by Lori Foster
“So you thought we’d just stop seeing each other, and if and when you turned up pregnant, you’d give me a quick call to break the news to me?”
It sounded very cold, having him spell it out that way. Of course, she knew she wouldn’t conceive. “You agreed with that plan, Tony.”
“Yeah, well now I don’t like it.” He glanced over his shoulder at her, then turned away again. “I think I have a better plan.”
“And that is?” The mixed feelings of excitement and trepidation settled in her stomach.
“Let’s continue to work at conception until we have positive news. If it takes three weeks, or four, what’s the big deal? And this way, I’ll be able to monitor every second of the pregnancy. You did agree to that, remember.”
At that particular moment in time, Olivia wished with all her heart that she wasn’t sterile. Spending more time with Tony, allowing him to be such a huge part of her life, would be next to perfection. But since she knew that couldn’t happen, she was left floundering for an answer he could accept.
None came to mind, and she stared at his broad back, seeing the rigid set to his shoulders, until finally he asked, “Olivia?”
“There’s no guarantee that it’ll happen in four weeks, either, Tony. We have to have some time limit. That’s only reasonable.”
He turned to face her, his expression stern. “Then give me a month.”
That was his corporate I’m-the-boss tone, demanding and expecting to be obeyed. She laughed because that tone had never once intimidated her. Teasing him now, she said, “You feel you can come up with sufficient potency in a month, do you?”
He grinned, too, as if her mood had lightened his own. Then his eyes narrowed. “Come here, honey. I have something to show you.”
There was a determined set to his jaw, a look of challenge, and Olivia’s curiosity carried her quickly to the desk. Spread out over the mahogany surface was a variety of photographs depicting a very posh hotel. “This is a new purchase?”
“Yes.” Tony moved the pictures around so she could see them all clearly. “What do you think?”
Olivia studied the photos. There was an immense, elegant banquet room done in white and gold. One picture showed a pool that seemed to be outdoors, surrounded as it was with foliage and trees and what appeared to be a waterfall, but in fact it was centered within a large glass enclosure. Some of the photos showed ornate chandeliers hanging from many ceilings, and everything seemed to be accented in gold.
“It’s beautiful.”
“The building itself is actually ancient, and we’ve kept most of the historic qualities, which will be a draw on their own. But inside, it’s been renovated a great deal. It’ll be supported by a very upscale clientele, and it’s where I thought you might relocate—if you choose—after the baby’s born.”
Her eyes widened and she took an automatic step back. Her stomach began to churn with a sick kind of dread. “I see.”
Tony’s jaw tightened and he ran a hand through his hair. “Actually the shop space is yours whether you conceive or not.”
It took her only a second, and then she shook her head. “No. Our deal…”
“To hell with the deal!” He drew a deep breath and shook his head. “I’m sorry. I feel lousy about this. You see, I’d already considered offering you the space before I talked with you about the baby. But I kept it to myself because I thought it might be an incentive for you to accept my proposition. But now…well, you deserve the space. You’re a good choice for the Crown. Our guests always love your shops, so I know you’ll do well.”
Olivia felt her head swimming. She tried to think, but it seemed impossible. This had been a horrendous morning all the way around. “I don’t know. It’s such a drastic move…”
“It’s a move up. A large expansion for your business. The sales potential here will be incredible.” He waited a heartbeat, then added, “Of course, the added shop will keep you busy. Having locations so far apart will be time-consuming, leaving little time for anything but work. But that shouldn’t be a problem for you.”
She glanced up at the way he said that. His gaze bore into her, hot and intent, waiting. But she didn’t know what it was he waited for. Then he insisted, “That’s what you want, right?”
“I… Yes. I want to grow.” Despite everything, she felt a flutter of excitement. The new hotel was exactly the kind of place she eventually wanted to occupy. Eventually.
But she knew why Tony was offering it to her. He wanted her to be so busy she wouldn’t be able to interfere in his and the baby’s life. That hurt. She lifted her chin and gave him a level look. “It’s a fantastic opportunity, Tony. But I don’t want to get in over my head. The Northwest is so far away…”
“Seattle, to be exact.”
He was watching her closely again, his arms crossed over his chest, and she had the feeling he was assessing her in some way. “Seattle.” She stepped away, walking around his office to buy herself some time. It was actually an ideal situation, because she’d need to be away from Tony. She had no doubt that once the two weeks was over—and she would somehow have to keep it at two weeks—she would have a terrible time facing him, seeing him and pretending nothing had ever happened between them. The added work would help keep her mind off Tony, off what they had shared. But Seattle!
“I hadn’t really considered this in great detail. After all, I’ve had other things on my mind.” She flashed him a quick, nervous smile, which he thankfully returned.
“You can have some time to think about it if you want.”
Time. Everything always came down to more time. Or the lack of it. “Yes, thank you.” The relief she felt was plainly obvious in her tone.
He put his hand to his jaw, studying her a moment, then went to his office door and turned the lock. It caught with a soft snick. When he started toward her again, she could see the intent in his green eyes and she backed up until her bottom hit the desk.
He stopped before her, watching her, waiting. Then, lifting his hands to her shoulders, he gently turned her away from him until she faced the desk. Slipping her purse from her shoulder and setting it on the floor, he said, “Brace your hands flat on my desk.”
She obeyed him without thought, her pulse beginning to race. “Tony?”
“I said I wanted to show you two things, honey, remember?”
“I remember.” The trembling in her voice should have embarrassed her, but she was too concerned with the way his hands were busy lifting her skirt to pay much attention to anything else. “Tony, I don’t think…”
“Shh. There’s this quaint custom called a ‘nooner.’ I think you’ll like it.”
His fingers slid along the back of her thighs, higher, until they touched the lace edging on her panties. “But, what if Martha knocks?”
“Martha went to lunch,” he said, his tone now husky and deep as he squeezed and petted her bottom. “I don’t have any appointments, and at the moment, I’m feeling particularly potent.” He lightly bit her ear to punctuate that statement.
“Um. I see.” His palm slid around to her belly, then dipped into her panties, and she automatically parted her legs. “We can’t very well waste your potency, now can we?”
He chuckled, his open mouth pressed to the back of her neck, warm and damp and hungry. And with her heart rapping sharply against her ribs and the sound of his zipper hissing in the quiet of the room, she decided every quaint custom should get its due. And right now, she liked this one very much.
*
THANKSGIVING DAY ROLLED around quickly, but Olivia no longer felt any apprehension at joining Tony’s family. Over the past two weeks, she’d come to know them all very well. They’d somehow managed to run into her repeatedly, one or the other of them having shown up at her shop whenever she was there ordering, or interviewing new managers for the new location.
It had started with his sister, Kate, who dropped in with the supposed intention of buying lingerie. She did leave with a couple o
f purchases, but most of her time there was spent chatting with Olivia, getting to know her better and sharing little details of her life.
Kate came again later that week with Lisa, and laughed as she described Brian’s reaction to the lingerie Kate had bought.
“I guess I must have let things get a little stale, because when he saw me in that satin teddy with all the cleavage, he nearly fell off the bed.”
Lisa joined in the laughter and ordered herself the same teddy in a different color, but Olivia blushed to have such an intimate scene discussed in her presence. In fact, she was blushing most of the time that Lisa and Kate stayed to visit, trying on numerous things and including her in all their “girl talk,” as they called it. They didn’t pry, didn’t ask her anything personal about Tony, but they certainly talked about him.
If there was anything she’d wanted to know, they had the answer, and seemed to relish telling her.
“Tony’s played patriarch since our father’s death,” Kate said, her voice becoming a little more solemn. “He’s set himself up in a difficult role, and I for one think he deserves a little fun.”
Olivia wondered if she fell under the heading of “fun.” Kate and Lisa seemed to think so, given the way they included her.
“It hurt Tony even more than it did the rest of us,” Kate continued. “He was the oldest and, even though Dad was always fair, there was a special bond between the two of them. John never had any real interest in the hotels, at least not to the extent Tony did, so it just happened that Tony and Dad spent more time together.”
“When he died,” Lisa added, “John was so concerned for Tony. But Tony being Tony, he hid whatever grief he felt and dived headfirst into turning the business around. I think he did it as much to keep himself busy as to watch the company grow.”
“And he almost cut women out completely. Before that, he’d seemed determined to find a wife. He wanted to be married like the rest of us, and he gave different women a fair chance, though even I’ll admit he really hooked up with some impossible choices. Tony is such an idiomatic man, arrogant, but kind. And always in charge. It would take a strong woman to satisfy him.”
Lisa laughed, then nudged Kate in the shoulder. “He used to claim he was looking for the perfect woman.”
Kate grinned. “And we’d tell him we were already taken.”
All three women laughed, and Olivia began to feel some sort of kinship with them. Without thinking, she said, “Well, unfortunately, I’m as far from perfect as he could possibly get.”
Kate shook her head. “The idea of perfection exists only in the perspective of the person who’s looking—and what that person is looking for. Besides, love has a way of finding perfection in the most unlikely places.”
“And anyway,” Lisa said, choosing another pair of “barely there” panties, “you and Tony are having fun, he’s dating again and the kids all love you. For right now, that’s more than enough, don’t you think?”
Olivia avoided the context of the question, and said only, “I’m glad the kids approve of me.”
“They adore you,” Kate insisted. “And the way those kids worship their uncle Tony, that’s a big requirement for any relationship he might have.”
Of course, Olivia hadn’t told them that her relationship with Tony had a set purpose and a time limit. He’d said to take it one day at a time, and she was doing just that, enjoying herself and storing away the memories so she would never be truly alone again. But her two weeks were rapidly coming to an end, and it wouldn’t be fair of her to continue in the deception.
*
A FEW DAYS later at a different Sugar and Spice location, she was going over some backstock with one of her managers when Brian and John showed up. They looked around the shop with undiluted interest. John appeared to be enthralled, but Brian, unbelievably, had a dark flush to his lean cheeks. Olivia hid her smile.
“So,” John called out, striding toward her with his cocky walk and self-assured grin. “There’s the lady who’s managed to single-handedly put a honeymoon into the daily workweek.”
Olivia felt her own cheeks heat, and slanted a look at Brian. But he had paused by a rack of a sheer lace camisoles and seemed to be engrossed in examining them.
“Hello, John.”
He pulled her close and gave her a big kiss on the cheek. “I do love this place of yours, Livvy, I really do.”
He’d affected Maggie’s pet name for her, as had all the children. She felt flustered by such an effusive welcome, and tried to gather herself. “I’m glad you approve. Do you have business in the hotel today?”
“Nope. Brian and I are Christmas shopping. Since the ladies have been hanging out here so much, we figured you’d know which things they’ve shown an interest in.”
“Well, yes.” There were several items the women had liked, but had hesitated to purchase because they were a bit pricey. She hesitated herself, uncertain of how much they wanted to spend.
Brian took care of that worry for her. “Whatever she wants, I’ll buy it.”
John laughed at that firm statement. “Poor Brian. Kate has really got you tied up now, doesn’t she?”
“You don’t see me complaining, do you?”
John gave a mock frown. “I don’t know if I like hearing this about my little sister.”
“Your sister’s not so little anymore, and whatever tendencies ran through the Austin men, she inherited her fair share.”
John cast Olivia a look. “Now, Brian, you’ll go and spook Livvy if you say things like that.”
Olivia had no idea what they were talking about, but she was beginning to get used to the way the men razzed each other. She shrugged and said, “Not at all.”
“There, you see? Anyone who knows Tony at all already knows he’s a driven man. Just stands to reason that drive would cover every part of his life.”
Understanding hit her, and she tightened her lips to hide her smile. Yes, Tony was a “driven” man, always excelling at whatever he did—including lovemaking. She certainly had no complaints there.
Feeling a little risqué herself, she asked, “So it’s a family trait, is it?”
John laughed. “Indeed it is. So you see, you with your nifty little shops fit right in. And like all the Austins, Tony goes after what he wants—and doesn’t give up until he gets it.” She didn’t have time to reply to that since he quickly rubbed his hands together and asked, “Now. What does Lisa want? I can hardly wait.”
Brian snorted. “Are you sure this shouldn’t be your Christmas gift?”
Both men paused as if they’d just had the same thought, then reached out to shake hands. “I’ll pick what I want, and you pick what you want. At least this year, you won’t give me an ugly tie.”
“That was a silk tie, you idiot, and very expensive.”
“It didn’t match anything I own.”
The men continued to argue as they each chose what the other would give them for a holiday gift. John picked out a satin Victorian-style corset, then grinned. “I’m going to be a very happy boy on Christmas morning.”
Brian held up the gift John would give to him, a snow-white, stretch-lace teddy with attached garters. “Me, too.”
The men were so outrageous that Olivia ended up laughing with them and feeling entirely at her ease. Before their shopping spree was over, they’d purchased numerous gifts for their wives, several for themselves, and instructed Olivia to point their wives in the direction of the more risqué items if they mentioned wondering what to get for their husbands. Olivia promised to do just that.
Her manager and the additional clerk had their hands full gift wrapping all the purchases.
They were such an open, loving family, the men so dedicated to their wives, all of them functioning with such unity. And they kept including her. Despite her intentions to stay detached, she found herself feeling a part of things, and actually looking forward to visiting with them again.
This would be the first Thanksgiving she hadn�
��t spent alone since her parents had died, and she was suffering a mix of melancholy and excitement.
*
TONY ARRIVED RIGHT at three to collect her. She’d dressed up a little more than usual, wanting to make the most of the day, and when she let him in, he gave a low whistle. “Honey, you’d make the perfect dessert tonight.”
With his gaze ranging over her body, she knew the dress had been worth the extra expense. Made of soft black cashmere, it fit her body perfectly, the off-the-shoulder design making it just a bit daring. The hem ended a good two inches above her knees, and she wore heels, which put her on eye level with Tony.
He caught her hand and pulled her close, then bent to press a kiss to her collarbone. “Tony…”
He lifted one hand and palmed her breast, but paused when she sucked in a deep breath. “Did I hurt you?”
She shook her head, unable to catch her breath with him gently kneading her. She felt especially sensitive tonight, her breasts almost painfully tight.
“Your nipples are already hard and I’ve barely touched you.” Tony groaned softly. “What I wouldn’t give for an extra hour right now.” Reluctantly he released her.
When she turned away to get her coat, he cursed, then mumbled, “If we weren’t expected…”
“But we are.” She grinned, though she felt every bit as urgent as he did. Even if she had a lifetime, rather than just a few more days, she’d never get enough of having him want her. She shook herself, refusing to think of the self-appointed time limit now. She didn’t want anything to spoil this day.
A light snow had started that morning and now, as they stepped outside, Olivia saw that everything was coated in pristine white. The naked tree branches shimmered with it, and it clung to everything, including Tony’s dark hair. After he opened the car door for her, she reached up and brushed his cheeks, her fingertips lingering.
“Olivia.” Tony leaned down and gave her a melting kiss that should have thawed the snow. He lifted his head, searched her face, then bent to her mouth again. Olivia forgot the weather, forgot that they might be late, and wondered if they could go back inside again. Then they heard a tapping sound, like knuckles rapping on glass, and they looked up.