by Jean Joachim
THE LOVE LIST
By
Jean C. Joachim
Copyright 2012 Jean C. Joachim
Smashwords Edition
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Copyright © 2012 Jean C. Joachim
Edited by Katherine Tate
Cover Design: Jean C. Joachim
Dedication
To Lisa George
This book would not have been written without your urging and constant support. Your love for Grey and your belief in their story encouraged me to continue. Thank you so much.
Acknowledgment
Thank you to my friends at Tuesday Tales for your unfailing support and good humor. Also to Catherine Harding, my researcher partner, Marilyn Lee, Diana Finegold and Sally Gallagher, my beta readers, my editor, Kate Tate, and Larry Joachim for your love and support.
Other Books by Jean C. Joachim
New York Nights Series
The Marriage List
Champagne for Christmas
The Dating List (coming soon)
The Moonlight Series
Sunny Days, Moonlit Nights
April's Kiss in the Moonlight
Under the Midnight Moon (coming in 2012)
Now and Forever Series
Now and Forever 1, a Love Story
Now and Forever, 2, the Book of Danny
Now and Forever 3, Blind Love (coming in 2012)
Preface
Grey Andrews and Carrie Tucker's story began in The Marriage List. This book is a continuation of their story.
Grey made his fortune by renovating townhouses in New York City and investing his profits wisely. At 34 years old, he had been looking for a wife for three years. He wasn't seeking a run-of-the-mill wife, but one who has all three qualities on his "marriage" list. Finding a woman who could meet his standards appeared to be wishful thinking until he went to a writer's conference. There, he bumped into beautiful Carrie Tucker, an aspiring mystery writer.
Carrie, an advertising copywriter, twenty-nine years old, was seeking a publishing contract, not love. Declaring the city full of losers, she turned away from men and focused on getting ahead. But Grey Andrews was not a man to be ignored. He pursued her, wooing her with his charm, affection and generosity. Carrie succumbed.
Their mutual attraction led them into a torrid affair. Grey had never been happier. In his heart he knew Carrie was the woman he had been searching for and now he had to convince her he was the right man for her forever.
Their sizzling relationship grew into love within a few months and they became inseparable. Though job pressures and uncertainty swirled around Carrie, she found a haven with Grey, a supportive and affectionate lover. Drawn to Carrie like a bear to honey, Grey decided he had met the woman of his dreams and prepared to settle down with her.
Grey's hopes went out the window when unforeseen circumstances blasted them apart. Carrie was faced with a difficult decision. Soured on marriage since her first, short-lived adventure into matrimony had ended in heartbreak, Carrie left the City at Thanksgiving. She spent the holiday with her beloved aunt, Delia Tucker, hoping to sort out her life.
Their engagement didn't surprise those close to them. Everyone who knows Grey, knows he doesn't give up when he wants something and he wanted Carrie. Grey, a handsome man about six feet with a dazzling smile and Carrie, about five feet six made a handsome couple.
Their story continues here as they wake up the day after Thanksgiving at Grey's parent's house in tiny Pine Grove in upstate New York. The easy love and kidding of Grey's close family envelopes them. His two sisters, Barbara who is older and Jenna, who is younger and the one closest to Grey and one younger brother, Colin, welcome Carrie.
Put away the orange blossoms and cupids, Grey and Carrie still have hurdles to clear and challenges to face. He must learn how to have a committed love relationship since this is his first. And gun-shy, independent Carrie needs master patience if she wants this man.
Chapter One
Saturday, November 28 – Pine Grove, NY
Carrie rolled over in bed and placed her palms against Grey's bare chest.
"Good morning," she murmured, unwilling to disturb the quiet in the house.
"Good morning," he replied softly back.
The warm caress of his large hand sliding down her side and over to squeeze her rump stoked her desire for him. She spread her fingers to extend her reach to more of the hard muscle under his soft hair and skin. She wanted him.
"We can't…everyone will be up soon…but tonight…" she whispered.
"We can linger here a moment and remember." He sighed, his fingers combing her hair.
Carrie giggled and buried her face in his neck. Grey pulled her naked body close to his for a hug, holding her against him. She lay there for ten minutes, eyes closed, enjoying the feel of him against her, daydreaming about making love with him before he stirred.
"Come on, let's take a walk before the insanity starts."
"Insanity?" She opened her eyes and raised her eyebrows.
"You've never been to breakfast with eight other people jabbering at you before you've had your second cup of coffee, have you?"
Oh my God, noise in the morning. I hate that! Being part of a big family, can I do it? She shook her head.
Grey peeled the covers down on this side of the bed, careful to leave her covered. Once out of bed, he yanked the blankets up to their original place. "Time to move."
He got up and quietly put on his warmest clothes, tossing clothes to Carrie. She struggled into her underwear underneath the down quilt, to avoid the chill in the room. Once her thermals were on, she ventured out of the bedclothes into the icy air of the bedroom.
"Was it this cold in here when you were growing up?"
"Yup. I learned to dress quickly."
Carrie slipped on fleece pants, cashmere socks and a flannel shirt that matched Grey's, an early Christmas gift from his sister, Jenna. Once she was dressed, they crept downstairs trying to be as quiet as possible. In the kitchen the faint aroma of cooking turkey from the Thanksgiving feast two days before lingered in the air. Grey filled the coffee maker and turned it on, pulling down two mugs with brightly-painted roosters on them.
Once the coffee was made, they took it into the living room and went to the window. On the way they passed a healthy Christmas tree about seven feet tall covered with glass balls and a hodge-podge assortment of ornaments gathered over the years. Fran marshaled the family to put up the Christmas tree on the day after Thanksgiving, while she had all her children together.
Carrie stared at her left hand. The brand-new, three-cara
t diamond resting on her fourth finger twinkled its brilliance and clarity at her, reminding her of her engagement, now three days old. Grey sat on the window seat in front of a bird feeder and pulled her onto his lap.
There's food in the feeder. Are there still birds this far north in November? Haven't they all migrated by now?
Neither one spoke but Grey slipped his arm around her waist, steadying her and she rested her head against his shoulder.
"Come on," he said, easing her off his lap, taking her hand and leading her to the back door.
They pulled on down parkas and gloves, Carrie tucked her shoulder-length streaked blonde hair under a knitted hat. The early risers trudged out into the cold where their shoes crunched on the thin layer of hard snow. Their breath hung suspended in the frigid air. Grey took her hand again and she followed him down a well-worn path to the lake. The bright sunshine bouncing off the frozen water peeked through gaps in the trees, blinding her temporarily. She could see the thick ice on the lake and a smile came to her lips.
"Let's go," she said, pulling on Grey's hand to increase their speed and moving out onto the frozen surface.
A sudden sharp tug on her hand pulled her back with a jerk.
"No!" Grey hollered at her, folding his arms around her so she couldn't move.
Carrie looked up at him and raised her eyebrows. "Grey? What the…"
"Don't go there." He tightened his grip, his mouth set in a grim line.
"But it's frozen solid. And it's so much fun to walk on."
"It isn't frozen solid."
"It is. Look," she said, squirming to get away but unable to shake off his firm grip.
"No, no, no Carrie." His eyes shone as he held her still, and she watched him blink back tears.
"What?"
"The ice, it's wrong. It looks frozen but it isn't. When I was eight, my best friend, Tom, dared me to go out on the ice. I refused and tried to keep him from going but he wouldn't listen. He fell through and died before I could get help."
Carrie hugged him, her cheek on his chest. She moved back a step and looked into his eyes, catching a glimpse of the frightened little boy he was on that horrible day. What a terrifying experience! Her heart melted.
"I'm so sorry. I won't go there. I promise."
He leaned his head on hers and closed his eyes. "I couldn't stand to lose you, too. I love you so much," he whispered.
"I love you, too." She snuggled more tightly into the comfort of his embrace.
They held onto each other while the sun melted the ice coating the tree branches and the air began to warm up. Cold water dripping down on them from trees above forced the lovers to move.
When they returned to the house, other family members were up and about. Noise began to build in the once quiet old Victorian as Grey's brother, sisters and parents awoke to make their plans for Christmas together. Refilling their mugs, Carrie and Grey sat cross-legged on the living room floor enjoying the Christmas tree and the cacophony of chatter and laughter all around them.
****
December 23 – Four P.M. New York City
Grey inched his Jag XK into traffic and moved slowly toward the West Side Highway along with the other drivers anxious to start their Christmas holiday. Thrumming his fingers on the steering wheel, impatience tugged at his nerves; he wanted to get home.
Stupid asshole accountant. Grey had spent the week going over every entry in the company books for the whole year with a by-the-book accountant. Digging out paperwork to support every accounts receivable, every accounts payable entry, he was totally out of patience. At three o'clock, the maddening man finally left and Grey was more than ready to begin his five days of Christmas bliss, starting with a tasty meal cooked by his gorgeous fiancée, Carrie, to be followed immediately by passionate lovemaking. He was hungry, hungry for more than food.
At the red light, he texted Carrie he was on his way home. He knew she was at their townhouse redecorating. How did I ever find her? Damned lucky. Painting in the bedroom today? The bedroom… A grin broke out on his face as a vision of her stripped bare lying on their bed filled his thoughts.
Carrie had clued him in on her elaborate plans for converting his bachelor-pad townhouse into a comfortable home for them. He was sometimes too distracted by business concerns or desire for her to pay close attention to the details. He expected when it was finished their house would be like a palace compared to when he'd lived there alone. The chime from his phone interrupted his thoughts. It was a text, probably from Carrie, he figured, but the cars began to move so he couldn't check it.
Traffic snarled again, magnifying Grey's agitation so by the time he got home, the first thing on his mind was a stiff vodka and tonic. As he pulled into the garage, he could swear he picked up the faint aroma of his favorite dish, boeuf bourguinon, simmering in the oven. He yanked open the door to the house and barged through, trying to turn his tight frown into a smile when he almost bumped into a huge mass of tangled furniture. His nose was assaulted by the pungent odor of fresh paint.
He turned his head toward the kitchen but could detect no aroma of anything cooking. Picking his way around the pile of chairs, lamps and end tables he moved into the living room.
"Carrie!"
"I don't care what your plans are Enrique, you can't dump this here now! We had an agreement. Yes, bring the furniture NEXT Thursday not today!" She was pacing in the living room, her back to him.
Grey stood tapping his foot on the polished wood floor, annoyed Carrie didn't notice him.
"We're leaving tomorrow morning! No, I can't. No. No and that wasn't our agreement. What? You're going where? When? You knew this all along, didn't you? The other rooms aren't ready. They have to be painted first. You expect ME to carry that stuff up the stairs? Well that's too bad! Come back and pick it up! What? What did you say? Same to you, Enrique!"
Carrie slapped her phone closed, color rising in her face when she turned. She jumped when she saw Grey. Her head jerked up and her hand flew to her throat.
"Oh my God! I didn't know you were home."
"What is all this?" Grey stretched out his hand and swept it over the area taken up by the stacked furniture.
"This is Enrique dropping off my furniture a week early!" She clicked the pen in her hand on and off, on and off.
"Crap. Where's dinner?"
"Dinner?" Carrie sucked on her lower lip, her large, light blue eyes glancing at the pile of furniture blocking the exit to the garage.
"Yeah, you know that meal we eat at the end of every day?" He strode into the kitchen and pulled down a tall glass.
"Oh, dinner. I thought we'd eat out. I've been struggling all day…"
"You've been struggling! I had a terrible day following a terrible week," he said, slamming a handful of ice cubes into the glass, then unscrewing the vodka bottle.
Carrie stood and watched him as he sloshed vodka into his glass then drowned it with tonic water. He stirred it with his finger, took a gulp, then noticed the silence and looked up at her.
"Were you going to offer me one of those?" Her hand rested on her hip as she shifted her weight.
"You want one?"
"Duh. Why do you think I asked?"
She doesn't have to be so nasty about it. I'm not a mind reader.
Grey turned to get a spoon to stir her drink and noticed the bedroom, his bedroom, was torn apart and the bed was missing.
"What happened? Where's my bed?"
"It's upstairs, against the wall. Our bedroom was painted today."
"We have no bed? Dammit!" He slammed his fist down on the counter.
No dinner. No sex!
Carrie stood stock still, a frown planted on her lips, and glared at him. She had paint in her hair and on her jeans. She wore an old shirt of his also plaint splattered and rolled up at the sleeves. Her silence commanded his attention again and his eyes roved over her form.
"What happened to you?" He poured an inch of vodka in the glass, then splashed tonic on to
p.
"I had a few run-ins with paint today. I should have stayed out of the room when Ramon was painting but I needed a few things…did you know rollers spray a fine mist of paint?"
"I do now." He chuckled in an unkind way as he squeezed a slice of fresh lime in Carrie's drink then stirred it.
"It's not funny." She approached the counter where he was mixing her drink.
"So where am I going to sleep tonight?" He handed the drink to her then took another gulp of his drink as his eyes narrowed on her.
"We can set up the bed. It's in the hall. The room smells like paint but that will go away…it was water-based paint, so it isn't too strong…"
"I hate the smell of paint. I can't sleep like that! What's your back-up plan?"
"I don't have one." She took a big gulp of her drink, her eyes studying him over the rim of her glass.
"You don't have one? What kind of planning is that? The house is a wreck. What are we going to do with this furniture? More rooms have to be painted and we're going to live in…in…this?" He gestured at the pile and ran his hand through his hair.
"If you're going to behave like this, then I'm going to sleep at my house tonight," she said, picking up her purse off the counter and walking over to the coat tree.
"I don't care where you sleep!" He shouted, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his keys, then he threw them in the silver key bowl, cursing when they bounced out onto the floor.
He bent down to pick up the keys, stopped, raised his eyes to her face and straightened to face her when he heard her gasp.
****
Carrie blinked as fast as she could to keep from crying. Her hand flew to cover her mouth. Speech eluded her as the rapidly growing lump in her throat seemed to close off all air to her lungs. She stared at Grey, watching his expression change from the hardened mask of a minute ago to one of contrition. His hazel eyes appeared warmer, softer as they gazed at hers. She moved her right hand over her left, her fingers closed around her diamond ring and tugged at it.