by Reese Ryan
“I hope this is dressy enough.” She raised her arms and glanced down at her outfit. “Formal’s not my thing, so I borrowed something from Mimi.”
“You look stunning.” He kissed her cheek. “And taller.”
A wide smile spread across her lips, accentuated by a deep red shade of lipstick. She gestured toward him. “You look pretty good yourself. You shaved and everything.”
“Thanks.” He opened her door, barely able to tear his eyes from the skin of her inner thigh that appeared as she slid into the passenger seat. Maybe he was a perv for leering, but the woman looked good enough to eat with a side of fries. So sue him. He got behind the wheel and cleared his throat. Eyes on the road, pal. “You ready for a fantastic evening?”
“Feeling pretty confident, aren’t you?” She laughed. “What’s on the agenda for tonight?”
“That’s strictly need-to-know,” he said. “For now. But I am confident. I’ve been waiting for this for a long time. I’m glad you said yes. If you hadn’t, I would’ve spent tonight alone, and I’d never have been able to show my face at Tahlia’s again.”
“Then it’s a good thing I said yes.”
* * *
The meal was exceptional, and it was the first time she’d eaten at a really nice restaurant in...well, she couldn’t remember how long it’d been. She tried not to act like an untamed animal, but the steak was so good she’d been tempted to lick the plate. The molten chocolate lava dessert and homemade vanilla bean ice cream were a stroke of genius. No wonder the fitted dress she was wearing suddenly felt as if it were being strained to its limits.
“Thanks for dinner. It was incredible,” she said as they left the restaurant.
“Then the evening is off to a good start.” He leaned a little closer, his voice floating into her ear like a whispered secret.
“What’s next?” She nudged him as they stood at the valet station, waiting for his car.
“I told you it’s a secret. Be patient. You won’t have to wait much longer.” He slipped his hand into hers and she let him.
“Okay, fine. Torture me.” She closed her hand over his and tried to ignore the tingling feeling in her fingertips that made her heart flutter.
* * *
“James? Is that you? In a dress? I must be in the fucking Twilight Zone right now.”
“Ex?” Jamie let go of Miles’s hand and turned toward the valet who climbed out of his car. “What are you doing here?”
The man scooped her up in a warm embrace. “Been working here for about a month. You know, making ends meet. How ’bout you? Still bartending at that uppity bar?”
Jamie’s cheeks grew pink. “I’m still at Tahlia’s. You should come by and get a drink sometime.”
“Maybe I will.” The man surveyed her, his eyes roaming the curves of her body like a wolf assessing how much meat he’d glean from a lamb.
Miles’s jaw tightened as he clenched his fists at his sides. He had an overwhelming desire to punch this guy, though he didn’t even know him, and Jamie didn’t seem inclined to introduce him.
“Guess I’ll see you later, Ex.” Jamie moved toward the door Miles held open for her.
“This your date tonight?” Ex nodded toward Miles.
Miles’s face burned with heat. He gritted his teeth.
“Oh, yeah. I’m sorry.” Jamie hit her forehead with her open palm. “Miles, this is my friend Ex—I mean, Xavier Hunt. We’ve known each other since we were kids. Ex, this is...my friend, Miles Copeland.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
The two men nodded, sizing each other up. Neither of them made a move to shake hands.
“Well, it was nice meeting you,” Miles said flatly as he walked around the front of the car and got inside.
“You, too, man.” Ex lifted his chin in Miles’s direction and folded his arms over his chest. He stepped back from the curb, face twisted in a sneer as he watched them pull away.
They rode for a few minutes in silence.
Finally, Miles spoke. “So, your friend, Ex. He seems...interesting.”
“Is that your way of saying you don’t like him? ’Cause it was pretty obvious you two weren’t crazy about each other.” She turned her head toward him.
Miles cleared his throat, teeth clenched. “I don’t even know the guy.”
“Yet you gave him your Darth Vader death stare? What was that about?”
“He was ogling you like you were a steak and he hadn’t eaten in a month. It was disrespectful. It’s obvious that you and I are—”
“On a first date? Because that’s what this is. I’ve known Ex since...forever. You’re not gonna get all weird every time I run into an old—”
“Boyfriend?” Miles kept his eyes ahead but gauged her reaction in his peripheral vision.
She exhaled through tightly pursed lips. “He was never my boyfriend. But if that’s your way of asking if we’ve slept together, the answer is yes. We have. I’m not a virgin, you know. Or is this coming as a complete surprise to you?”
Miles’s cheeks grew hot. He bit his lip and forced the air from his lungs. “Of course not. I just didn’t like the way he was staring at you, that’s all. Maybe he’s a perfectly nice guy and not the complete asshole he appears to be, but I wouldn’t know that. After all, you weren’t even going to introduce us.”
“I don’t know why I did that.” Jamie shifted in her seat, staring down at her fingernails, coated with black polish. “It just seemed, I dunno, weird.”
“You said I’m not the kind of guy you’d normally date. Is that why you didn’t want to introduce me?”
“This is why I don’t go out with ‘sensitive’ types. It’s not a big deal. You two are from completely different worlds and, I don’t know, it felt weird, like Mars and Jupiter colliding. I just wanted to get the hell out of there. I’m sorry, okay?”
“You and Ex come from the same place. If you didn’t think our worlds should collide, what about you and me? Is that how you feel about us?”
Jamie looked out the window again and shrugged. “If I said I didn’t wonder what a guy wearing thousand-dollar loafers sees in a girl from the trailer park, I’d be lying.” Her fingers traced the handle of the door as she stared out the window.
“You wanna know what I see in you? You’re funny. You’re opinionated. You’re never afraid to say exactly what you think. You’re fucking gorgeous. You make me laugh and you actually get my sense of humor. What do I see in you? Jamie, what don’t I see in you? You’re everything I want in a woman.”
Jamie’s laugh came out as sort of a snort. “Are you sure you’re talking about me? Because I just remember being a complete pain in your ass. Arguing with you. Challenging you—”
“Forcing me to be honest with myself,” he said. “Like what you said about my sister. You were right. I flew home that weekend and apologized for treating her like a kid, because that’s exactly what I’d been doing. It’s no wonder she fought me, no matter what I said. It was like I was the dad and she was this rebellious teenager. I told her that I’m her brother, always, but that I also want to be her friend. That she can tell me anything and I’ll listen patiently and respect her opinion.”
Jamie turned to him, smiling. “What’d she say?”
Miles grimaced, thinking of what an ass he’d been. His jaw softened, an uneasy mix of guilt and optimism settling in his gut. He could still see his sister’s face, how relieved she’d been. “She cried. That’s all she’s wanted from me for years. The solution was so simple, yet I couldn’t see it.”
“I’m glad you and your sister...what’s her name?”
“Kari.”
“I’m glad you and Kari were able to work things out.”
“We were, and you did that. So when you act like you don’t have anything to offer...that’s bullshit. You’re an amazing person. I just wish you saw yourself the way I do.”
Jamie turned toward the window but didn’t respond.
* * *
“T
he Contemporary Museum of Art? This is the surprise?” She turned toward Miles.
“I know you said you’re not the fancy museum-benefit type, but you are an artist and there’s a new exhibit featuring up-and-coming local talent. So I took a chance.” A tentative smile crept across his face as he tried to gauge her expression. “Whadya think?”
“I love it. But tonight’s the sneak preview gala. I thought that was sold out. How’d you get tickets?”
“A friend.” He pulled up to the valet station and they got out of the car. He escorted her inside.
“Oh my God.” She covered her mouth and turned to him. “I need to tell you something before we go inside.”
“Another one of your exes works at the ticket counter?” He raised his brow and smirked at her in a way that was both maddening and sexy as hell.
Jamie punched his shoulder playfully. “No, smart-ass. At least, I don’t think so. Anyway, you know that I paint—”
“Which is why I thought you’d want to come here tonight.”
“And I do,” she said. “But what I didn’t tell you is that recently I entered a juried art competition sponsored by the museum and...I came in third place.”
“That’s fantastic! Why didn’t you tell me about this before? We should celebrate.”
“Miles, the picture I painted—it’s...” The words died on her lips.
“What about it?”
“Nothing,” she said quickly. “I think it’s better if you see it.”
* * *
They explored the museum until finally they entered the exhibit hall, where the work of the finalists from the contest was being displayed. Jamie hung behind Miles as he approached each painting and surveyed it, reading the small plaque that introduced the artist and explained the painting.
“My God.” He came to a halt in front of hers, eyes widened and his mouth open as he braced one hand against his chest. It couldn’t be. He stepped forward, his head angled slightly as he took in the entire portrait. Fingers splayed, he reached toward the painting, getting as close as he could without actually touching its surface. He turned to her, his hand still suspended in midair. “You did this.”
Jamie nodded sheepishly as she stood at a distance, fidgeting with a button at the waist of her dress.
“It’s me. I can’t believe it.” Miles raked his fingers through his hair then pressed them to his parted lips. The moment seemed so surreal, as if he were in a dream. His voice came out shaky, and his pulse raced. He’d wanted to impress her tonight. Instead she’d impressed him. “How...I mean, when’d you do this?”
“Over the past few months. I started it for practice, but when it was done, I knew it was my best piece yet. I showed it to my mentor. She loved it and thought I should enter it in the contest. My entry barely made it in time. I still can’t believe I placed third.” The words flew from her lips at a breakneck pace. Finally she took a breath. “What do you think? Do you like it?”
“Do I like it? God, Jamie, it’s magnificent. I knew you were an artist, but I never expected this. Your work is exquisite. It’s as good—or better—than anything we’ve seen here tonight.”
Chin lifted and shoulders back, she heaved a sigh of relief. “Good, because this would’ve been really awkward if you hated it.”
Miles pulled her into a hug and kissed her, his hand resting on her cheek. “This is the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen. Did you paint the entire thing from memory?”
“Not all at once. A little here, a little there until I finished.”
“It’s brilliant, Jamie. You’re brilliant. And I love it.” He encircled her in his arms tightly.
She sank into the warmth of his chest. He could feel her shoulders relax.
“Did you think I wouldn’t like it?” He pulled back enough to scan her face.
She shrugged and walked closer to the painting, reexamining it. “We don’t always see ourselves the way others do. Subjects are often unhappy with the way they’re portrayed.”
He stood beside her. His arm pressed against her shoulder. “I guess that’s true. We tend to see ourselves in a far better light than others do, but at times it’s just the opposite. We’re more amazing than we give ourselves credit for. It’s nice to have someone who’ll help us see the truth, either way.”
Jamie didn’t respond but shifted her weight to her right foot, leaving just a sliver of light between them.
“Why’d you decide to paint me?”
“Your eyes. There’s something about them...” She turned to him, her hand drifting to her cheek. Leveling her gaze with his, she cleared her throat. “They always seem so happy.”
He studied the portrait. The eyes were luminous. They danced with joy and reflected a light that was almost magical. The smile, too, seemed to be a focal point of the piece. His heart swelled with a feeling he couldn’t quite describe. What she’d done, it was so much more than paint on a canvas. It was a concrete manifestation of her feelings for him, even if she couldn’t see it. The portrait was like a secret message to him, hidden in plain sight.
Miles stared at the picture a bit longer. The episode in the car, right after they’d crossed paths with her friend Ex, had made him wonder if he was fooling himself, thinking things would work between them with their myriad of differences. But staring at the painting now, he was certain there was something there worth fighting for. Maybe she wasn’t ready to admit it now, but she wanted this as much as he did.
Chapter Ten
Jamie sat in Miles’s car, her legs crossed in a short, denim skirt and a pair of army boots she’d scored from her favorite thrift store. Judging by the way he’d been eying her legs whenever the opportunity presented itself, she guessed he approved of her choice.
They’d been going out for a few weeks and had spent the bulk of their sixth date at Dave and Buster’s shooting billiards (he was better than she’d expected), playing games and watching football on the countless television screens.
Now they were headed to a grocery store to pick up a few items for his place. Construction on his new condo downtown had gone beyond the projected schedule and budget, but the place was finally done. He’d moved in a couple of days earlier and was dying to show her the place.
“You must be excited to finally be moved in.”
“I am. Living out of a hotel room and dining out every night got old quick. It was fun when I was eating with you at Tahlia’s, but it hasn’t been quite the same since.” He pulled into a space in the superstore parking lot and they strode toward the store, her hand gripped firmly in his.
“You picked the worst possible person in the world to shop for housewares with,” she said. “The only reason I don’t still open my canned goods with a rusty knife is because Ellie saw me do it one day and nearly had a fit. She bought me a can opener and a bunch of other stuff so I wouldn’t stab or poison myself. Mimi, on the other hand, loves this crap. She could redecorate your entire condo before you’ve had a chance to blink.”
“I could use a little help pulling the place together before my mother comes to visit. When construction went over budget, I cut the interior design services. Think she’d be interested?”
“She’d be foaming at the mouth to take on a clean slate and a budget that has more than two zeroes in it. Just let me know when you’re ready and I’ll introduce you.”
They laughed and talked while they shopped. Being with Miles made even the most mundane tasks enjoyable. As he loaded his bags into the trunk, an older couple walked by.
“What a nice couple,” the woman remarked, beaming. “I remember when we were their age, honey. And they look just as in love as we were then.”
She and Miles smiled at the couple and exchanged pleasantries, but something in the pit of her stomach felt as hard as a stone. Breathing suddenly became more difficult. Her gaze followed Miles as he closed the trunk and wheeled the cart to the nearest corral.
Jamie had always lived life on her terms, and that meant no long-term relations
hips. She’d witnessed what happened in those relationships. Maybe it took five months, or five years, but eventually someone got hurt. She’d had enough pain to last a lifetime. That was why she’d avoided getting her heart tangled up in something that could only go sideways. But one pair of hypnotic blue eyes and a devilish grin, and she’d forgotten about the need to protect her heart, no matter what. If she didn’t, who would?
Four lunch dates, six official dates, and she and Miles still hadn’t slept together. Instead she’d slipped into this ridiculous romance, like a lovesick schoolgirl. No wonder Mel got her heart broken so much. She spent so much time building up the relationship in her head before they’d sealed the deal. They were being absurd. She’d wanted to fuck Miles Copeland since the day he’d walked through the door of Tahlia’s. She’d restrained herself then because of Tahlia’s rule, and the fact that she needed her job. But they were both consenting adults. Not sleeping with him now was just plain stupid. More importantly, she’d given him the upper hand in the relationship.
She’d watched her mother surrender complete control of her mind, body and soul to the men who floated in and out of her life. They’d treated her like shit because she’d needed them. They were the ticket to her next drug score, her next bottle or paying the rent.
Jamie didn’t need any man, not even her father. She’d done fine without him. She wasn’t about to let Miles upset the careful balance she’d established. It was the only thing keeping her sane.
“Is everything okay?” Miles approached the car. “The door is unlocked so—”
Jamie rushed to him, grabbing his shirt in her hands and pulling his face toward hers. She pressed her lips against his, kissing him with an intense desperation. He was surprised at first but quickly acquiesced, slipping his arms around her waist and pulling her body into his. A wicked grin tugged at the corner of her mouth as she felt his body responding to her, his desire pressed against her belly. She was in control. And there was no doubt he wanted this as much as she did. No more waiting. She tore her mouth from his just long enough to whisper, “We need to get back to your place. Now.”