by Jay, Wendy
“Well, maybe I can help you with your hunger, Miranda.”
Miranda stared in disbelief. In her doorway stood Jude J. Delaney. This was one ghost she wasn’t prepared to deal with…not right now, but here he stood with that damn smirk on his face and looking fucking gorgeous as ever. Damn Miranda, get a grip. Not like you didn’t just see him in town!
“Hello Jude, nice to see you again.”
Miranda looked directly into his eyes as she gained her composure. What she really wanted to do was walk over to him, push him up against the wall, and kiss him…hard. He was handsome enough when a teenager, but now…oh my God he was, simply put, fucking HOT. Her stomach clenched and that familiar tingle began to rise from her lower regions. Taking another bite from the apple, Jude extended it toward her, teasing her.
“Want your apple back?”
“No, that’s ok, I will grab another.”
Miranda opened the refrigerator, she was very thankful for the coldness on her face and she motioned for him to have a seat that the bar.
“So, Jude, still living in Grandpa’s house?”
Miranda sat down, crossed her legs and wondered if small talk with Jude was even possible. After all these years, he still had an effect on her. This wasn’t going to be an easy task, but she loved a challenge. Jude walked over to the bar stool and sat next to her, purposely brushing her knee that was peeking out from under her robe. Watching her…watching every lovely, sexy inch of her, Jude thought how lucky he was that he caught her in her robe and slippers. Damn woman was fucking gorgeous no matter what the hell she wore!
“Yeah, Miranda, after Grandpa Joe died, I finished college and fixed the place up a bit, but you would have known that if you hadn’t run off to LA after high school.”
Jude smirked at her, even though she threw him an icy glare.
“Still a sore spot with you, Mandy?”
“Still an irritating fucker, aren’t you Jude?” Miranda spat out. “You know damn well…”
Jude reached over and grabbed her arm and pulled her inches from his face.
“Careful, Miranda, you’re not the only one with transgressions lurking in their past. I have a couple of my own to conquer,” he hissed and then let her go to settle back on her bar stool. Stunned, Miranda just sat there with her mouth gaping open.
“Ballsy son of a bitch…Guess that hasn’t changed over the years,” Miranda mumbled under her breath. Jude laughed at her and took another bite of his apple. He enjoyed making Miranda squirm.
“I thought you always felt that to be one of my more endearing qualities, Mandy…among a couple of others. Need I remind you of them?”
Now it was Miranda’s turn to smile coyly at him.
“Ah, no, my memory is very much intact. You never were the one to hide your “attributes” or anything else for that matter.”
Narrowing his eyes, Jude leaned in close to Miranda and lowered his voice, taunting her.
“A trip down memory lane can be, shall we say, an exciting prospect?”
“I didn’t come back to Willow to stroll down memory lane with you, Jude.”
Miranda turned from his gaze as a single tear ran down her cheek. Jude reached up and cupped her cheek with his hand and wiped the tear away with his thumb.
“I know, Miranda. I was stunned to see you today. But as long as we are both here, why don’t we put the past behind us and move forward, together?”
It wasn’t often he saw this side of Miranda. She could go from fragile as a flower to tough as steel in a split second. She was an angel one minute, then burn with the fires of Hell the next. This was something he found most intriguing about Miranda. This fiery redhead was someone he had always wanted to make his own…to possess her heart and soul. His stomach clenched at the thought. After all these years, she still affected him! Who was in possession of whom?
“Why don’t I pick Snm?
“I would like that Jude. How about I meet you at your house? I have seen you drive, remember?”
Miranda reached for Jude’s hand and squeezed. God how he affected her. Jude flashed Miranda a dazzling smile.
“Deal, sweetheart, see you at 7:00. Dress comfy.”
Jude winked at Miranda and left. Miranda sat at the bar and a smile crossed her face. She tapped her chin and thought about unpacking.
“I can’t show up in my robe…although it might save time.”
Miranda giggled and the thought of showing up that comfy. She made herself another cup of tea and grabbed a cinnamon roll. She could hear Jeffrey scolding her and she took a big bite. What the hell…she would run it off tomorrow. Miranda went back upstairs and looked around at all the boxes. She had to find something nice to wear. Casual, but she wanted to make an impression on Jude. She wasn’t the teenager he knew years ago. I’m a woman now Jude Delaney.
Chapter 9
Now that the middle of the week was here and she had a date with Jude, Miranda knew she had to do more unpacking. The kitchen was well set up and the living room was completely functional. The only thing left to do in the living room was some rearranging and place books, videos and bric-a-brac on shelves. Miranda laughed as she put The Wizard of Oz on the shelf. I can’t watch it every night.
Moving furniture and unpacking boxes took up most of her morning and early afternoon. The mailman knocked at the door and Miranda went to see if there was a package to sign for or another issue. Miranda opened the front door and was greeted by a young man holding an envelope with a red rose attached.
“I thought best to knock and let you know I found this on your doorstep when deliverin’ your mail ma’am.”
Miranda took the envelope with the rose and smiled at the young mailman.
“Thank you, it hasn’t been here too long, the rose still looks fresh.”
She shut the door and tossed the other mail on the table. Miranda smelled the rose and opened the envelope. It was a hand written invitation.
Your presence is formally requested tonight at the Excelsior Hotel, Gold Ballroom, for a charity function benefiting the “Inner City Children’s Network”. Please arrive promptly at 8:00 pm.
Black tie
*Don’t decline…it wouldn’t do to have the chairman of the foundation to be dateless. ~Jude
Beside his name he placed a “winking smiley”. She smiled and looked at her watch. Three thirty…enough time to do a manicure and pedicure after a long hot shower.
After her shower, Miranda sat at the vanity to do her nails while her hair dried. She always loved going to a salon for this kind of pampering, but there wasn’t time for that and a mini mani-pedi would have to do the trick. Two hours later, her French-tipped finger and toenails were dry. In her closet were several garment bags that held high-end fashion, designer dresses. She pulled out one of her favorites, holding it up to her and looked in the mirror.
“This one will knock his socks off.”
She dropped her robe, stepped into the dress and shimmied it up her body. Not wanting to get anything on her dress, she put a towel around her neck, applied her makeup and moved on to her hair.
“Hmmm….up or down?”
She looked in the vanity mirror and decided an up-do would be perfect for this black tie affair. She curled and pinned her hair to perfection and sprayed it lightly to keep it in place. Small diamond studs in her ears and her gold watch would be plenty for jewelry. Her best pair of black heels and beaded clutch would top off this outfit perfectly.
**********
It was a warm evening, but not wanting to ruin her hair, she left the top up and drove to the Excelsior. It was 7:50pm when the parking attendant opened her car door and offered her his hand. He stood staring at Miranda. She chuckled when he shook his head.
“You can drive a stick, right?”
“Ahhh, yes ma’am,” he replied, jumped in the Lexus and drove to the parking lot. Smiling, she went inside and crossed the lobby, feeling all the stares. Miranda had to admit, this dress was a head-turner, and she knew she
wore it well.
The Gold Ballroom was beautiful. The chandeliers alone were out of this world. She spotted Jude immediately and she stood there…waiting for him to notice her.
He looked at his watch, it was exactly 8pm. Jude turned towards the entryway where Miranda stood looking directly at him. Miranda started to smile when she read his lips.
“Holy fuck,” Jude mumbled as his jaw fell open. She was utterly stunning.
He stood there, staring at this vision of beauty for what seemed to be several minutes. Miranda stood there in a breathtaking, emerald green silk gown that clung to her body from her neck to her calves, and then flared out to the floor. The halter neckline accentuated her ample breasts and the slit up the side tantalized him as she walked toward him. He could feel that all too familiar stirring in his pants as he watched her walk. All eyes in the room were on Miranda as she crossed to where Jude stood. Jude leaned towards Miranda and put his arm around her waist. It was then he noticed her dress was completely backless. He touched one of the red curls that framed her face and lightly kissed her cheek.
“My God, Miranda, you are breathtaking!”
“Thank you, Jude, for the invitation. I can see by the look on your face that you approve of the dress?”
“I do…and so does every other man in the room, but I can’t say much for the other ladies. They may rip it off you before I get the chance to.”
Jude looked at Miranda with a hunger in his eyes. She had a devious grin on her lips as she whispered, “I don’t think they should…I am not wearing anything underneath.”
Jude narrowed his eyes as they grew dark.
“Don’t tempt me, the night is young,” he murmured as he took her arm and led her to the head table. “Can I get you a glass of wine, Miranda?”
“A merlot would be fine, thank you.”
Jude was stopped three or four times on his way to the bar and a couple more times on his way back to the table. She noticed the guests shaking Jude’s hand, handing him what appeared to be checks and leaving the ballroom. Back at the table, Jude placed the wine in front of her and sat next to her. He put his arm over the back of her chair and his hand on her bare back. He crossed his legs toward her and brushed them against hers. Jude spoke in a low, husky tone.
“Miranda…spectacular doesn’t even begin to describe how you make that dress look.”
“You are looking quite spectacular yourself in that tux, Jude,” she spoke as she slipped her hand under the table and began to stroke his thigh. Jude grabbed her hand.
“I still have a presentation to give. I’d rather not have a raging hard on while talking about the plight of inner city children.”
“Now you know how I feel when you touch me or bore holes through me with those damn eyes of yours.” She cleared her throat as she continued. “Tell me about your foundation. Why inner city children?”
“The reason is pretty self-explanatory. You know I came from Georgia. My biological father is dead. My mother was a slut and an alcoholic. I moved to Willow when I was 12 years old, when my mother left me a note saying she was leaving with ‘Uncle Vern’. Grandpa Joe and Grandma June took me in and formally adopted me.”
“I don’t remember seeing you in schoo [ yoormalll until you were about 15 years old.”
“Yeah, Grandma June home schooled me for 2 ½ years. I had abandonment issues and was a ‘difficult’ boy,” Jude chuckled. “Grandpa decided after she died it was time to put me in public school.” Jude stopped and took a deep breath. “I’m on, sweetheart. Wish me luck. We need to raise a lot of dough for these kids.” Jude rose and walked confidently to the podium.
Jude’s presentation was concise and to the point. He hit all the highlights; why the foundation, his vested interest, where the money was going and what programs would be supported. Jude concluded his speech by introducing the foundation’s CFO and asked all to give generously. “Bar’s open. Enjoy the music and dancing…Thank you.” Everyone applauded as Jude rejoined Miranda at the head table.
“So what did you think, Mandy?”
“I think I am glad I brought my checkbook. What a wonderful thing you are doing for these kids, Jude. It is a marvelous cause,” she spoke earnestly. The band started to play and Jude stood, holding out his hand.
“Would you care to dance, Mandy?”
Miranda took his hand and followed him to the dance floor. Jude took her in his arms and began to move her around the floor. He held her, but not too close. The temptation to press up against her proved to be too great. When the song ended, he excused himself and walked to the bandstand and spoke with the lead singer. The singer nodded and turned to the other band members. They started to play as Jude reached Miranda, still standing on the dance floor.
The tune was all too familiar to Miranda as Jude took her in his arms again, this time pressing up against the full length of her body. The band played Wicked Game by Chris Isaak, just as Jude started to sing in Miranda’s ear. She stepped a bit closer and molded her body to Jude’s, feeling his erection grow. She slid her hips back and forth across him as he sang to her. Miranda was glad Jude had such a tight grip around her waist, because she was afraid she might fall as her knees grew weak. This was a wicked game. She wanted him as much as she could feel his desire against her leg.
As Jude sang to her, Miranda tilted her head toward his neck and began to nibble his neck and run her tongue around his ear. He groaned in her ear.
“Fuck, Miranda…don’t do that or I am going to drag you to the coat closet and we are going to embarrass the coat check girl to death.”
“Then stop singing in my ear with that low, seductive voice of yours or I am going to say screw the coat check girl and race you to the damn closet.”
They looked into each other’s eyes. Jude’s were dark and full of desire and Miranda began biting her bottom lip. He reached up and pulled her lip free.
“Don’t bite that lip too hard, darlin….save some for me.”
The rest of the night was amazing. The booze and money flowed and Jude’s foundation donations were above and beyond their projections. They continued to dance the night away and mingle with the remaining guest [maiThe ress.
The fire that once sparked between Jude and Miranda was smoldering…it was only a matter of time before it burst into flames and consumed them both.
Chapter 10
Miranda sat up on the edge of her bed, frustrated. So much for a good night’s rest! She had tossed and turned for the past two hours. Her mind ran in circles and nightmares plagued her all night. To hell with this shit! Miranda got up and threw on some jogging clothes. Maybe an early morning jog will clear my head.
“For once, I would like to get through the entire night and not get woken up with nightmares!”
Downstairs, she put on her jogging shoes, pulled her hair up in a ponytail, grabbed her baseball cap and headed out the door. The morning air was crisp and the sky was clear. It was perfect day for a nice, long run.
Miranda stretched and did a few lunges to warm up her muscles. Let’s see what direction I want today? At the end of her driveway she turned left, she headed toward town. It was 10 miles to the end of Delaney Road, so Miranda decided half way and back would be a nice long run.
Thirty minutes into her run, she heard a vehicle behind her. Knowing there are not many people on this road, especially this early, she turned to see a black SUV slowing down and pulling up beside her. She slowed her pace.
“Good morning, Jude.”
Jude flashed that killer smile and raised his eyebrow. Mmmm….
“Good morning, Miranda. I do love to hear a woman pant for me first thing in the morning.”
She stopped her run and put her hands on her knees, breathing hard.
“Jude, do you always have your mind in the gutter?”
“Why yes, my dear, of course, Especially when I see a woman as gorgeous as you, jogging along wearing tight shorts and a sports bra that does little to minimize her tits from bouncing.�
�
Miranda looked up at Jude, then shook her head and leaned in the window of the SUV. She laughed and slapped his shoulder.
“You are incorrigible.”
Jude reached out, hooked his fingers in the front of her jogging top and pulled her closer. They were nose to nose.
“Oh Miranda, you have no bloody idea how incorrigible I can be.”
He ran his tongue over her chin. Her skin tasted salty from sweat. She noticed how dark his eyes became when he was serious and she felt a tingle start to wash over her whole body. Miranda needed to change the subject quickly.