“Not at all. Surprise me,” she told him, taking a sip of her water.
An older man approached and greeted Joel with a hug and a laugh. “Joel, it is good to see you again, my friend. And you, lovely lady, I hope he is treating you right?”
“He is. You have a lovely place here,” Veronica told the man.
“Thank you. I have prepared a wonderful meal for you.”
Joel smiled and then nodded, “Bring it on then. I trust you to feed us well.”
Gino disappeared, and not even a minute later, a waitress came from the kitchens bearing a tray with freshly baked bread, whipped butter, and two plates containing bruschetta — toasted bread, drenched in olive oil and topped with a diced tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic, and mozzarella.
Veronica took a small bite and then closed her eyes.
“Good?” Joel asked.
“Amazing. The flavors are so bold and bright.”
“They make everything from scratch here, even the sausage.”
“You seem to have learned about a lot of elegant little places in and around Boston. Places that other people don’t know exist.”
“I try.”
A waiter appeared, setting two plates of steaming food before them with a smile. “Enjoy.”
“I’m sure we will,” Joel answered.
Veronica looked at the food and knew she wouldn’t be able to eat it all. Joel touched her hand and whispered, “Eat what you want, and they’ll put the rest in a box for your lunch tomorrow.”
“Perfect.” She observed the plate, identifying the lasagna, the chicken parmesan, but the last dish she was having trouble with. She pointed to it and then asked, “What is this?”
Joel looked at her plate and smiled. “Stuffed mushroom caps with sausage dressing and topped with melted cheese and butter.”
“Yum,” Veronica cut one in half and popped it into her mouth. “Wow! Okay, you must tell me what other secrets you know about this town. How could I have lived just outside Boston for most of my life and not known about this place?”
“They keep a low profile and don’t advertise except by word of mouth.”
Veronica looked around and saw that every table was filled with happy patrons, and at least a dozen more people were waiting to be seated. “It doesn’t appear to have affected them at all.”
“I’m glad you joined me,” he told her with a charming smile.
“Me too.” She dug back into her food, eating half of it before pushing her plate away. “I can’t eat another bite.”
Joel smiled and then looked over her shoulder and nodded. The waiter reappeared, “Are you ready for dessert?”
“Oh, no...”
“Yes,” Joel interrupted her. “Paulo, could you also pack up the remainder of her meal?”
“Certainly.” Paulo left with their plates and returned with two cups of tiramisu, then left again with a promise to return momentarily.
Veronica eyed the dessert, knowing she should abstain, but the curiosity to taste the decadent looking dessert won her over. She picked up her fork and took a small bite, closing her eyes and moaning softly. “This place has now ruined my appetite for every other Italian place in the city.”
“I feel the same way,” Joel said, watching her with hooded eyes. “God, I love watching you enjoy eating. You make those same sounds when we’re…”
Veronica’s eyes shot up, and she shushed him, turning bright red, “Hush! I can’t believe you just said…”
“Well, it’s the truth. Besides, no one can hear…”
“Here you go, Miss. Joel, will there be anything else?” Paulo said as he returned with the doggy bag.
“No, I think that’s it. Veronica, did you want anything else?”
“Maybe a wheelchair to get me out of here? I’m not sure I can walk after all of that.”
Paulo grinned. “Joel here is strong, and I’m sure he wouldn’t mind carrying you if it comes to that. Enjoy the rest of your evening.”
“We will. Tell you parents I’ll stop by more often.”
“They will hold you to that, my friend.”
“So, Paulo is related to the owners?”
“He’s their oldest son. He and I have been friends for quite a few years, but that is a story for another time. Ready to get out of here?”
“Yes.”
*****
Later that evening…
“Come up with me,” Joel asked as he hugged Veronica outside his truck. They’d had a lovely dinner at the Italian place he liked and then gone to a club where they’d listened to some live music and danced for a while.
Veronica wrapped her arms around his torso and nodded. “Yes.”
He kissed her deeply and then guided her to the elevator. He punched in the code with one hand, keeping his other around her as she plastered her front against his own. She felt warm and secure and was glad the night wasn’t ready to end.
The elevator bore them to the penthouse, and Veronica knew right away something was wrong when the doors opened, and Joel stiffened up like a board. She turned her head and then unwrapped herself from around him. There was a woman she’d never seen before standing, barefooted, in the middle of Joel’s living room.
The woman was absolutely stunning in a red, barely-there dress that looked like she’d been poured into it. Her hair and makeup were perfectly done, and she had the longest ruby red nails Veronica had ever seen. The discarded stilettos were undoubtedly hers and something Veronica would never attempt to wear in fear of breaking her neck. The woman’s perfume permeated the air, and Veronica took a step away from Joel before giving him a questioning look. He didn’t return it. Instead, he stepped off the elevator with a terse, “Giselle. What are you doing here?”
The woman gave both Joel and Veronica a thorough look and then laughed lightly. “Oh, I was in the neighborhood and wanted to return your keys. I left them on the kitchen counter and then decided I needed to use the bathroom before I took off again. I was going to stick around and say ‘hi,’ but it looks like I’m interrupting something.”
“How come I didn’t see your car out front?” Joel’s voice had lost its warmth.
“I didn’t feel like driving tonight so I took a cab over.”
“You should have texted me that you were thinking of stopping by,” Joel told her, still acting a little standoffish.
“Now where’s the fun in that. I was going for the element of surprise.”
“You’ve surprised me.”
Veronica watched the woman, wondering what her connection to Joel was, but deciding it was better to wait until she was gone to ask. Maybe Joel would even volunteer that information.
“Fine. Thanks for bringing the keys by.”
“Is that my invitation to leave?” the other woman chuckled and then gave Veronica an assessing look. When Joel didn’t correct her, she shrugged, “Oh, well. Guess my timing was off.”
“That is an understatement.” Veronica could hear the iciness in Joel’s voice, but she passed it off as him just being irritated their date had been interrupted. “Let me walk you down,” Joel offered coldly.
Giselle laughed and shook her head. “I can find my own way down. Sorry to interrupt your evening.” She moved past them, slipped into her heels, and then picked up her discarded coat and flung it over her elbow. “See you later.”
The elevator doors closed a moment later, and Veronica watched Joel as he thrust a hand through his hair for a moment before clearly pulling himself together before turning to her.
“Sorry about that. She should have just left the key downstairs with the doorman, and he shouldn’t have let her up here.”
“Who is…,” she started to ask, but Joel took her back into his arms and silenced her question with a passionate kiss.
She wrapped her arms around his neck, her body immediately heating up like before. “You can tell me later,” she murmured when he picked her up in his arms and headed for his bedroom.
“Or not.” He gave her a look a
nd then sighed. “Look, Giselle is from my past, and she was bringing the keys by because we don't see one another anymore. Haven’t for quite a while now. I really don’t want to talk about the past, any more than you want to talk about yours. I want to focus on us. Can we do that?”
Veronica nodded against his chest, pushing aside the little niggling doubts that were trying to take hold in her mind. She found it odd that Joel hadn’t introduced the two women, but then again, he might have been taken so off-guard he just wanted her to leave. She had arrived unexpectedly and disturbed their lovely evening.
He set her down on the bed and then kissed her. “I’ll be right back,” he whispered and disappeared into the attached bathroom.
Veronica removed her shoes and loosened her dress. Joel was entitled to have a past, just like she was, and she justified his cool reception to Giselle by telling herself she might have acted the same way if Dustin suddenly showed up in her apartment unannounced. Dustin was her previous boyfriend and former lover, and she would be highly uncomfortable should he intrude in such a fashion. Key, or no key.
Joel returned, and she forced her doubts aside, choosing to focus on the here and now. Joel was trying to do the same thing, and while he was an attentive lover as before, there was something different this time about their lovemaking. The intrusion of Giselle had somehow changed the dynamic between them, and though they both were trying, and the sex was still amazing, it didn’t hold near the same emotional connection for Veronica that the previous times had.
There were no whispered words of affection from Joel this time around, and instead of taking his time and slowly driving her crazy, he ramped her up as quickly as possible and got right to it. Veronica didn’t have any complaints, loving the way the chemistry between them flowed, but there was just something missing this time around.
“Joel,” she murmured as he pushed himself into her body once more, causing sensation to flood up her spine as it arched.
“Shush. Just feel. There’ll be time to talk later.”
Veronica tried to do as he suggested, giving herself over to the sensations of making love with him, but she missed the closeness they had before. She tried not to overthink it as he cuddled her close afterward, and she drifted off to sleep. The next morning, things seemed to be back to normal and Veronica headed home to get some chores done. Joel had never tried to explain about Giselle, and Veronica kept telling herself it didn’t really matter. His past was his and unless it directly impacted the future where she was concerned, she didn’t need to know. She’d just have to keep telling herself that until she actually believed it.
Chapter 14
A few days later…
Joel had just finished showering and was headed out of the locker room when his phone rang. He glanced at the caller I.D. and smiled. “Derick.”
“Hey, man. How are things going?”
“Good, good. I’m just leaving practice right now.”
“I was just calling to let you know the money was wired over to your account this morning.”
“Awesome. Thanks, man. So, how are things? Do you see any increased business?”
“Are we ever? In fact, I was thinking it’s been a while since we caught up.”
“That is has,” Joel agreed.
“So, I’d like to meet you for dinner tonight.”
“Derick, hey, I appreciate the offer, but tonight I’m kind of busy.”
“I won’t take no for an answer. How does six o’clock sound? And bring your plus one, too.”
“What? How do you know...”
Derick’s chuckle came through the line. “Six o’clock at Ferdinand’s. See you there.”
“Derick...,” Joel bit back his reply when the line went dead. “Well, it looks like we have dinner plans, after all.”
He finished walking to his vehicle and then placed a call to his “plus one,” but she didn’t pick up her cell phone. He located the number for Senator Tompkins's office and placed that call as he pulled out of the parking lot and into traffic.
“Hello?” Veronica answered her desk phone, her attention on the computer screen in front of her and not on the call.
“Hey, babe. How’s your day going?” Joel’s voice came across the line.
Veronica sat back in her chair and smiled. “Fine. Why are you calling my office number?”
“Because I tried texting and calling you, but my call went straight to voicemail. When you didn’t answer, I figured maybe your phone was dead.”
Veronica glanced at her phone and chuckled, “You guessed right. I forgot to plug it in last night when I got home.” She did so now with the cord she kept on her desk and asked, “What’s up?”
“I’m having dinner tonight with a friend from college, and I want you to go with me.”
“Okay. I’m just finishing up the notes on this latest project, so I’m actually going to get out of here at a decent time tonight.”
“Great. Derick’s a pretty cool guy. I think you’ll like him.”
“I look forward to meeting him. What time is dinner?”
“Well, that’s the thing. The dinner reservations are for six o’clock at Ferdinand’s, but I have a meeting until 5:30 pm. Could I just meet you there?”
“Sure. In fact, I might do a little window shopping instead of going home and coming back. With traffic, I’d be lucky to have five minutes at home before I needed to be headed back into town. I’ll just meet you there.”
“Awesome. See you then. Hey, I missed you last night.”
“I missed you too.”
“Maybe after dinner, we can spend some time together. I have a late practice tomorrow…”
“…but I have to be at work an hour earlier than normal. The senator is making his case tomorrow on the floor of the senate. We all have to be here no later than seven in the morning.”
“Well, at least I’ll see you for dinner. Hey, Coach is waving at me, so I need to get off the phone. See you later?”
“You can count on it.” She hung up the phone and got back to work. She didn’t have much time for window shopping by the time she cleared up several other projects occupying space on her desk. Ferdinand’s was one of the Michelin star restaurants in the city and only a block from her office. That would make it three blocks back to her car later, but she’d worry about that when the time came.
She arrived at the restaurant about the same time Joel was handing over the keys of his truck to the valet. He spied her and smiled as she joined him. “Hey, beautiful. Did you walk?”
“I did, but I would gladly accept a ride back to my car after dinner.”
“You’ve got it. Let’s see if Derick is here already.”
Joel led her into the restaurant, and after providing his name to the hostess, they were led to the back of the restaurant and a secluded booth large enough to accommodate at least eight people, but there were only the three of them.
“Derick. I’d like you to meet Veronica Samuels. Veronica, this is Derick Gillespie.”
Veronica shook the man’s hand, frowning. “Your name sounds familiar, but I’m sure we haven’t met.” She took the seat Joel was holding out for her.
“You probably saw his name when you were signing up for Duets.”
At the mention of the online dating app, Veronica frowned. “What?”
Joel smiled once more and then seated himself. “Derick is the mastermind behind the app. It’s his computer wizardry that matched us together.”
Veronica was stunned. “You designed Duets?” She took a closer look at Joel’s friend. He had sandy brown hair that wasn’t so much styled as it had just been finger combed into some semblance of structured chaos. His bangs were too long, and he kept moving them out of his way with his fingers. His blue eyes were almost a gray color and his complexion gave testament to the fact that he spent most of his time indoors. He was about the same size as Joel when he stood up, but there was no comparison in the muscle department. Compared to Joel, Derick looked like a
stick figure. He was handsome; he just didn’t do anything for her libido.
Derick smiled at her and nodded. “Yes, ma’am. It’s doing great, by the way, Joel. Have you seen this?”
Derick handed Joel a rolled-up magazine, and Veronica watched as Joel’s face went from happy and calm to irritated and angry.
“What’s this? Another publicity stunt, Derick?” Joel demanded.
“No, but it’s working. Great picture, by the way,” Derick told him with a grin.
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