“Lies? We told no lies, love. So, why the teasing last night?” he asked her as he leaned forward and took her hand which laid on the table top. His thumb stroked her palm, making her stomach go tight, and heat flood her entire body. Warmth pooled in her nether regions and Kel knew things would be harder for her than she was used to handling.
“Why the rush to go to a hotel?” Kel volleyed back.
“I do recall that you were in every bit as much of a rush as I was. Your body told me as much. Your soft skin was begging for my touch,” he said with a husky voice that made her ears ache to hear more.
“Did it ever occur to you that I might’ve been testing your character, Ethan? I told you about my heartbreak and gave you the opportunity to do the right thing, and you didn’t do it,” Kel said. “So, I’m willing to give you one more shot.”
“You are?” he asked as he moved his hand up her arm in a slow and deliberate motion. “And what kind of a shot are we talkin’ ’bout here?”
“You can take me on a legitimate date. One in the light of day. One where you can show me you’re a gentleman and not some fly-by-night rogue who wishes to give me a toss in the hay then fly away like a thief in the night, taking my heart to a new low.”
His eyes lit up as his lips curled into a smile. “I’m in your heart?”
Kel wasn’t happy with how her words had betrayed her. “You could be. If you play your cards right.”
“Then I’ll play them right, my love. Your heart is right where I long to be. You’ve kind of broken into mine as well.”
Pulling her hand to make her stand up, he pulled her to him and then down on his lap. His mouth took hers and found it wanting as she kissed him back and wrapped her arms around him.
She’d be putty in his hands after he showed her a bit of gentlemanly behavior. Kel would be easy to get into bed; of that Ethan was sure.
Chapter 15
Thanks to the women’s aunt and uncle at the bed and breakfast, the men were privy to information that had them planning dates that would definitely encourage intimacy. Griff had a rental car delivered to him and set out to pick Jess up. He was set to impress the young woman.
Pulling up to the curb in front of their modest two-story home, Griff found it was quaint and homey. The porch was simple, with cement stairs that led to a green door.
Griff carried the box of dark chocolates and a bouquet of a dozen yellow roses with him as he went to ring the bell. It was her father who opened the door. White hair, a wrinkled face, and a frown greeted him. “And you are?”
“I’m Griffin Houser, Mr. Flannigan. I’m here to pick up Jessica for our date.”
The door was pushed open as Jess’ father took a step back. “You may as well come inside. She’s not ready yet.” Mr. Flannigan was an abrupt man, none too happy looking. “They told me about you men. I can’t say I agree that any of them should be going on a date with you. We know nothing about any of you except you’re not from around here.” He took a seat in an old, beat-up plaid chair and set his light blue eyes on Griffin. “So, why bother with my daughters?”
Griffin wasn’t used to being talked to in such a way. Being from a prominent family, he was always treated with a certain amount of respect. Most fathers would’ve been over the moon if he had wanted to date their daughters. But he had to remember that no one in the small town knew a thing about who he really was. He took an unoffered seat on the old sofa, sinking into the deep recesses of the cushion that had seen better days.
“Mr. Flannigan, my friends and I were in Boston for a funeral. We wanted to put a spin on the sadness and make a trip through New England to check out the beautiful scenes there’re so many of in this part of the country,” Griffin said as he smiled. “When I saw your daughter in the pub, well, I knew she was an exceptional person and that I’d like to get to know her.”
“Who died?” Mr. Flannigan asked, making Griff freeze.
He wasn’t sure if he should reveal that information, as it might not sit well with the man. But he had no choice. He couldn’t lie to him. It was likely he’d be asking his friends the same question.
“Julia Loveless was a client of mine. She was killed in a hit and run accident. Very tragic. I was sent by my company to pay our respects to her family.” He nodded sadly as he looked at the floor that was covered in old, rust-colored carpeting.
The house was lovely outside but dated inside. It needed a renovation pretty badly. He wondered if he paid to have that done whether it’d win him some brownie points. Then he remembered the spending limit and knew that was out.
“She was your client?” Mr. Flannigan asked. “Anything more than that? Your lover, perhaps?”
Griff choked as the man hit the nail on the head. “Um, uh …”
“Hey, Griff, you ready?” Jess asked as she came down the stairs that creaked under her light weight.
He jumped up, extending the box of candy and the flowers. “I am! Wow, you look beautiful!” He hurried to meet her as she stepped off the last step. “I got you these.”
Dressed in jeans and a T-shirt and a pair of tennis shoes, she hadn’t tried to impress Griff. Her long, dark blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she wore a bit of mascara and nothing else.
Jess took the box of chocolates as she leaned in to smell the roses. “My fav color, Griff. How’d you know?” She looked Griff over and found him wearing something similar, a pair of faded blue jeans, a nice pullover and a pair of Nike’s.
“Oh, are they?” he asked as he smiled shyly at her. “This is my favorite color of roses too. How interesting. Don’t you think?”
She nodded as she looked at the box of candy. “And dark chocolate is my fav too.”
“Another thing we have in common,” he said as he extended his arm for her to take.
She tucked her hand into the crook of his arm as she went to place the candy on a small table. “Put the vase of flowers in the center of this table. I think they’ll look pretty here, Griff.” She set the box of candy next to them and kissed his cheek as her father made a huffing sound. “Thank you. I love them.”
“You’re very welcome, Jess. Are you ready to go?” Griff asked.
“Take him to meet your mother,” her father directed. “She’s in the kitchen.”
“Come on, Griff,” Jess said as she led him out of the living room, down a dark hallway.
Griffin had to admit to himself that he was feeling a swarm of butterflies. “Is she as nice as your father is?” he asked with a little chuckle.
“You knockin’ my dad, Griff?” Jess stopped and asked him as she looked him in the eye.
“Hell, no!” he said with a high voice. “I love him!”
“Good,” Jess said, then continued down the hall. She pushed open a galley-style door to a room where there was an older woman with grayish hair kneading a large ball of dough. “Mom, this is Griff.”
Wiping her hands on her white apron, the woman smiled as she approached them, extending her hand. “You can call me, Mrs. Flannigan, Griff.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said as he shook her hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“You think?” she asked with a wink. “Let me see if ya still think that after I tell you what I have to say.” She pinched his cheek. “This girl is my baby girl. If she gets hurt, then I get pissed. And I don’t handle anger very well. I tend to take it out on the flesh of who’s pissed me off. Do you understand what I’m sayin’ boy?”
Griffin nodded and thought to himself that she was much scarier than Jess’ dad. “I do, Mrs. Flannigan. I’m just going to be taking Jessica out for the afternoon. No hurting involved.”
“I want to know where it is you’re takin’ my daughter, boy,” she said, then went back to beating the hell out of the dough ball.
“Lunch and a movie,” he said as he looked at Jess with wide eyes. “Is that okay with you, Jess?”
“It’ll do. Do I get to pick where we eat and what we see?” Jess asked.
“And the movie better not be one of those nasty, dirty, smutty ones, boy!” her mother warned him as she gave him a wink. Her mother’s body language was just the opposite of the words that came out of her mouth. It was amazing and frightening at the same time.
“Well, the movie is a love story, but I don’t believe there’s anything smutty about it. It’s rated PG, I think,” Griffin said, then turned his attention to Jess. “As for you choosing where we eat and what we see, I’ve already made those decisions.”
“Controlling? Dominating?” Mrs. Flannigan asked with a smile.
“No, ma’am, not at all,” Griff said as he shook his head. “It’s just that she asked me to make a date that wasn’t ordinary. That’s why I picked the places. That’s all. Nothing more than that. I swear it!”
“No whips and chains for you, huh, boy?” her mother asked, sending him into a heat of embarrassment that Jess didn’t seem to have.
“No! I’m not into that.” He wiped his suddenly sweating brow.
“We can go now,” Jess said. “If you still want to.”
“Yes, yes, I want to. Happy to meet you, Mrs. Flannigan. I’ll have her back here before six this evening.”
“Fine,” the woman told him, then added, “Dinner’s at eight, if you’d care to join us. I’m making haggis.”
Griffin leaned in to whisper to Jess, “Isn’t that guts boiled in the stomach of a sheep or something like that?”
“It is,” she said with a smile. “I’d love you to join us. Griff.”
The urge to wretch was nearly overwhelming. He swallowed back the bile that had risen in his throat. “Sure, I’d love to join you all for dinner. Thank you so much for inviting me, Mrs. Flannigan.”
“See you then, Griffin,” she said with a grin that told him she was trying to get him to go away. But he wasn’t going anywhere. He’d manage to get some of the terrible food down, he hoped.
Jess led him out a back door, and they walked around the side of the house. When she saw the Lambo parked next to the curb, she stopped. “I wonder whose that is.”
Griffin pulled the key fob out of the pocket of his jeans and pressed the button to unlock it. “That would be my rental. Would you care to drive, Jess?”
“You’re shittin’ me!” Jess bolted away from him, as she couldn’t believe her eyes. It was her favorite color, canary yellow. She ran her hand over the smooth lines of the car. “I can’t drive this. I’m too afraid, Griff.”
“There’s nothing to be afraid of. Come on; jump behind the wheel, baby. You can take some of the lesser traveled roads so you can get used to how it handles before we set off to eat at the Bangkok Hill Thai Restaurant.”
Jess’ mouth dropped open. “How in the hell did you find out I love Thai food? I can’t ever get anyone to go with me!”
“You love it too?” he asked with wide eyes. “Me too!”
She pushed his chest as she shouted, “Shut up!”
“I can’t,” he said with a chuckle. “I do love it. Now climb in and let’s get out of here.”
“You’re really going to let me drive this badass car, Griff?” she asked as she put her hand on the door handle.
“I am. I’m trusting you with my life, Jess,” he said as he got into the passenger side.
She just stood there, wondering if he was really this way all the time or only stepping up his game to win the bet. Then she got into the car and told herself she didn’t care why he was being the way he was; she was going to enjoy the date and drive the car she’d only ever dreamt she would.
Chapter 16
Rolling up to the house Cait had given him the address to, Phoenix got out of the Rolls Royce he’d hired for the day and went up to get his date for the afternoon. Buttoning up his black Armani jacket, he smoothed out his matching slacks and rubbed the tops of his shiny leather shoes on the backs of them to make sure they were clean.
He pressed the doorbell but didn’t hear it ringing inside the house, so he knocked on the green door. “Coming!” a woman shouted.
A gray-haired lady, wearing a light blue dress with a white apron covering it, opened the door. “Well, you’re not the Scot, so you must be Phoenix, here for Caitlyn.” She let him in as she looked him up and down. “I’m her mother.”
Phoenix saw the yellow roses and box of candy on a small table in the living room. He mentally kicked himself for not thinking to bring those things to Cait. He reached out to shake her mom’s hand and found she’d already retreated to take a seat. She wore a friendly smile on her wrinkled face, and was a bit older than he thought she’d be.
“Um, should I go up and get her myself?” he asked as he stood at the foot of the stairs, feeling the need to grab Cait up and get the hell out of there.
The woman wore a sweet smile as she said with the most pleasing tone to her voice, “You go up those stairs, boy, and you’ll be met with a baseball bat to the head.”
“Oh,” he said as he stood where he was. “Um, then how will Cait know I’m here, Mrs. Flannigan?”
“These walls are paper thin,” she said. “I can assure you that she’s aware of your arrival, fancy pants.”
His brows arched with her words. He ran his hand over his expensive suit jacket. “I don’t usually dress so formally. I have kind of a special day planned for us, and I wanted to look my best for your daughter, Mrs. Flannigan.”
“Did ya, now?” she asked as the squeaking sound of a door came from behind him down a darkened hallway.
Phoenix watched a man wearing a white T-shirt and black, loose-fitting slacks walk toward him as he wiped his hands on his pant legs. “And you are?” the man asked gruffly.
“I’m Phoenix Nelson, sir,” Phoenix held out his hand. “You must be Caitlyn’s father. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Her father shook his hand, then shouted up the staircase, “Cait, get your arse down here. Your fella’s here.”
“Coming,” she shouted back.
Her father made his way to take a seat in an old recliner. “Are you gonna tell Cait’s mother and me why you really want to take our daughter out? Unlike the man who picked up our Jessica.”
Phoenix shuffled back and forth, wishing like hell Cait would hurry up so they could leave. “I like your daughter. She’s great. That’s why I asked her out.”
“But you didn’t ask her out,” her mother said with a smile. “The girls told you fellas to take them out.”
“Oh, yeah.” Phoenix wasn’t aware of how much the women had told their parents. Apparently, everything! “Well, I mean, I was going to ask her out anyway. Even before she told me to. And I do like her. I like her a lot.”
“And how much did you like Julia Loveless?” Mr. Flannigan asked him, making him nearly drop to the floor with surprise.
“Huh?” Phoenix asked, as he was in shock.
“The Loveless girl?” Mr. Flannigan asked. “What was she to you?”
“Um, how do you know about her?” he asked as he shook his head to clear it.
“The other boy,” Mrs. Flannigan answered. “So, how did you know the woman you went to the funeral for?”
“She and I were friends,” he finally said as he looked up the stairs, praying Cait would be at the top of them. She wasn’t, and he looked back to find her parents looking him over.
“Friends with benefits?” her father asked.
“Um, uh,” he had no idea what to say. “Not really.”
“What exactly kind of an answer is that?” Cait’s mom asked him as she picked up a couple of sharp knitting needles and some yarn from a basket next to where she was sitting.
Thankfully, Cait appeared at the top of the stairs, wearing a deep green dress and black heels. A row of pearls hit her right at her collarbone.
“Oh, God, Cait!” Phoenix could think of nothing else as he looked at her. Her auburn hair was pulled back with a headband made out of glittery beads; the rest of her hair spilled in loose waves over her shoulders as she walked down to him. He took her
hand, placing a kiss on top of it. “You’re gorgeous.”
“I love your suit, Phoenix,” she said, then pulled the lapel a bit and whistled. “Armani. Nice.”
The sweet moment was interrupted by her father. “And where will our daughter be?”
“Oh,” Phoenix said as he looked at the man who was frowning at him. “It’s a park. I’ve got a picnic planned.”
Her mother laughed as she shook her head. “Dressed like a couple of movie stars to eat on the ground. Have fun with that.”
“Mom,” Cait warned her mother. “Can you please be a bit nicer to this man?”
“I can,” her mother said. “As a matter of fact, I’d like to invite your young man to dinner tonight. It’ll be served at eight.”
Cait looked at Phoenix as she asked, “Would you like to come?”
He took her hand and gave it a squeeze. “Nothing would make me happier. I’d love to join your family for dinner this evening.”
“Great. I’ll set another place for you, boy,” Mrs. Flannigan said as she smiled like the cat who ate the canary.
“See you this evening then,” Phoenix said as he led Cait out the front door.
Her eyes fell upon the elegant car with the driver who was waiting at the back door for them. “You hired a car?” she asked.
“I did,” Phoenix said as they walked down the cement path. “Do you like it?”
“Afternoon, madam,” the driver greeted her. He was dressed in a chauffer’s uniform and tipped his hat at her as he opened the door.
“Good afternoon,” she said with a grin. “This is like a dream.” She slid into the back seat of the car. The rich color of the leather had her running her hand over it. “So soft. It smells so nice in here.”
Phoenix moved in next to her as the driver closed the door behind him. He leaned in and kissed her neck, taking in a deep breath. “You smell better, Caity-cat.”
With a giggle, Cait looked down at her hands as she had them folded in her lap. She hoped she could keep her wits about her with the man who was pushing all the right buttons.
Nobody's Girl: A Billionaire Romance Novel Page 37