The Secret Ingredient

by Nina Harrington

  ‘Laurel Court Residential Home. Second turning on the left. You can’t miss it. Big stone house with a gorgeous conservatory dining room. The teas will be set up inside and then served on the lawn if the weather is warm.’

  Rob flashed Lottie a quick glance from the driver’s seat. ‘Do you go and visit your friend very often?’

  ‘First Sunday of the month when I can. I missed last week. Too much on with Dee being away. But Lily knows that I’ll be there today.’ Lottie looked at her watch and sucked in a sharp hiss. ‘If we get there in time. Rotten cold. I hate being late.’

  ‘With you on that. What? Don’t give me that look. My life might be tabloid fodder but I keep my promises to people that matter. I do feel semi responsible for foisting my mother onto you in the first place, so if you want someone to blame for that cold, I am right here.’

  ‘I can see that. Why else would I allow you to drive my precious delivery van? This is definitely a one-off in more ways than one. I’m not used to having a guest baker around the place. But it was good of you to offer to deliver the cake for me.’

  Rob shuffled his bottom in the low seat and tried to get more comfortable but his gaze focused on the busy London street. He had already pushed the seat as far back as it would go but his knees almost touched the steering wheel. ‘How do you drive this thing?’

  Lottie laughed out loud and immediately started a coughing fit, which had her reaching for her water bottle. ‘Oh, please don’t make me laugh,’ she replied with her hand on her throat. ‘If you must know the van came from one of Dee’s pals and was such a good price it was hard to turn down. It does the job. Oh. Here we are. Laurel Court. Just turn into the drive. The car park is on the left.’

  Rob gritted his teeth in exasperation as he crunched the gears and slowed down to park in a narrow bay at the very end of the drive close to the house.

  He sat drumming his fingers on the steering wheel for a few seconds and pushed out his lips before speaking. ‘And you are sure that they know that I am just delivering the cake, right? Nothing else.’

  ‘Absolutely.’ Lottie nodded. ‘I am a walking biohazard. The last thing I want is for Lily and her young-at-heart pals to go down with a twenty-four-hour head cold. Not at their age. Bad idea. It would slow them down, which is totally unacceptable. They are having far too much fun.’

  Then she looked out through the windscreen and pressed her lips together. ‘Too late to run away now. They’ve spotted the van. We would never get out of here alive if we tried to escape without delivering that cake.’

  Then before Rob could protest, she rolled down the window and started waving like mad. ‘Lily! We’re over here. Come and meet Rob. He’s my...sous-chef for the day. And he cannot wait to show you the fantastic cake he made, especially for you. Can you, Rob?’

  * * *

  Two hours later Lottie was driving down the side streets of London, her fingers wrapped around the steering wheel, grateful that it was late on a Sunday afternoon and the traffic was remarkably light.

  Her headache was gone, her sore throat was already feeling a lot better, and the cotton wool that had clogged her brain was slowly easing away.

  Which was just as well seeing as Rob was in no fit state to drive the van back to the bakery.

  She slowed the van at the next set of traffic lights and grinned across at Rob, who was lying in the passenger seat with his head back and eyes closed.

  ‘How are your toes doing? Any sign of movement yet? Or do I need to drive to the accident department?’

  One eye creaked open and he slowly raised his head and glared at her. ‘Did you know that they had hired a dance band? And every single lady in the place expected a samba and a foxtrot before we got to the waltzes. Even the gals with the walking frames. And forget my toes. They are so numb I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if they were all broken. Oh, no, it’s my rear end that got the most damage. Those gals need more medication!’

  ‘Ah. Perhaps I should have warned you about the bottom pinchers. Don’t worry. The bruising will fade away in a few days. But you have to understand, that was the best entertainment those girls have seen for a long time. Lily and her husband had the best time. You were a total superstar!’

  ‘So you were watching me through the conservatory windows. I suspected as much. I hope you enjoyed the show.’

  Enjoyed? Lottie had simply brought her knees up to her chest and watched in awe as this amazing man who she had only just met charmed and laughed and danced and at one point even sang along with the residents of the home as if they were old friends having a great party.

  He had been remarkable. He was remarkable.

  But it would only make his ego swell larger if she shared just how much she had enjoyed watching him having fun and being himself.

  There was no bravado or false arrogance about this version of Rob Beresford. Just the opposite.

  She had been granted a glimpse of the man behind the celebrity mask and she liked what she had seen. She liked it more than was good for her.

  ‘I did enjoy it.’ She grinned. ‘But to be fair I think the wine served at the special lunch may have contributed to the merriment. That stuff is pretty lethal combined with the artificial colours in the jelly and ice cream they usually have for dessert.’

  ‘Jelly and ice cream?’ Rob repeated in disbelief. ‘That explains why they liked the cake so much. In fact, they demolished the cake and asked me to pass on the message that it was so nice that could you please bring more next time you visit? And more chocolate. The chocolate sponge was a hit.’

  ‘There you go. Praise indeed. Lily knows her cakes. And there are some advantages to being so tall. At least the cake made it to the buffet table in one piece before the girls saw it. They’ve been making cakes all of their lives. Any supermarket factory-made baking would go straight in the bin.’

  His reply was a slow shake of the head. ‘Last time I faced a crowd like that was at the international bake-off challenge in Paris. It was a battle but I survived.’ Then he paused and tapped one finger against his lower lip. ‘Actually, that’s not such a bad idea.’

  ‘What is?’ Lottie asked as she set off again.

  ‘Beresford hotels probably have six trainee pastry chefs at any one time. Boys and girls. It would be interesting to set up a contest and ask those ladies and gentlemen to pick the winner.’

  ‘Interesting? It would be brutal.’ Then she added with a grin, ‘And Lily would love it. Great idea—go for it. Although I think an idea like that is worth a small favour.’

  Rob groaned out loud. ‘Go on. Am I going to like this?’

  ‘The recipe for your chocolate cake, of course—and the icing. I think that would be a fair trade. And I would hate to let the residents down after they made a special request.’

  ‘Mmm. Not sure. That’s one of my specials. I think you would have to throw in an extra incentive to make me divulge something like that,’ Rob replied with a low husky tone in his voice that set the hairs on the back of Lottie’s neck standing up straight.

  She dared to glance quickly at his face and immediately had to calm her racing heart and focus on turning into the lane behind her bakery.

  The adrenaline-pumping heat of instant attraction coursed through her veins.

  This was it. If she wanted to show Rob how attracted she was to him it was now or never.

  Could she do it? Could she open up her heart, let him into her life, and not regret it?

  Rob made the decision for her by calmly walking around the front of the van the moment she turned off the ignition, opening the driver’s door, and taking both of her hands to help her to her feet, taking her whole weight and pressing her body against his.

  ‘How are you feeling?’ he asked as his gaze drilled holes into her forehead and messed around with her brain.

  ‘Bett
er. Would you like to come inside for some coffee?’ she managed to reply in a throat that suddenly seemed full of sand. ‘Cakes on the house.’

  Her reward was a smile that would defrost large ice sculptures at thirty paces. ‘I’ve been waiting all day to hear you say those words. Lead the way.’

  At catering college there had been plenty of late-night drunken clinches in dark corners of bars and sofa cuddling, but whenever it had started to get more serious she had ducked out at the last minute. Sexual stage fright. She wasn’t a prude, just cautious.

  To the world she was Lottie the brave, Lottie the entrepreneur, Lottie the baker. But never Lottie the woman who was afraid to show how scared and vulnerable she was.

  Always putting her own sexual needs and desires into second place. Waiting until she found someone who would not trample her into the ground. Waiting for the right man to share her bed with.

  Well, tonight she was determined to throw all of her common-sense caution to the wind. She turned to Rob.

  She wanted this gorgeous man with his wavy dark brown hair, blue eyes, and a body that was a work of art. She wanted to feel that sexy stubble on her skin and know what it was like to be the subject of his adoration. Then seduce him right back.

  Okay, so he had seen her without make-up with the head cold from Hades, but her body was not too bad and she still shaved her legs. Now and then. He wouldn’t be totally repelled.

  So what if he was Sean’s brother and she was bound to see him again?

  She liked him. More than liked him. They were adults. They could handle it, couldn’t they?

  A shiver ran down her back. This was going to happen; she had to make it happen. No second best. This was her selfish-indulgence and for once in her life she was going to put herself first and enjoy life to the full.

  Jogging into the kitchen, Lottie flicked on the CD player and turned up the volume as the lively saxophone music filled the air.

  ‘So you do like jazz?’

  She turned to find Rob leaning on the doorjamb. Watching her swing her hips from side to side in time with the music.

  ‘Care to dance?’ he asked, and held out his hand. ‘I have been in training recently.’

  She glided into his arms, his hands sliding along her slender waist until they rested lightly on her hips. Instinct rather than technique or practice made her lift her arms high and cup the sides of his neck.

  The music and the sensation of his hot breath on her forehead acted like a hypnotic dream where their bodies automatically knew how to move in perfect harmony.

  Her heart rate and breathing moved up another notch the second her forehead dropped forward onto his chest and again he matched her, heartbeat for heartbeat, his hands tightening on her waist and holding her closer and closer by the second.

  A faint smile quivered across her lips as his hands slowly slid lower until they were smoothing down the fabric of the silk shirt dress that had been in the first garment bag she had come to in the loft. Just the pressure of the slippery fabric and the heat of his fingers cupping her bottom were enough to make her catch her breath in her throat and for a second his hands stilled.

  Then she broke the moment by giving a very girly giggle and pulling her head back just far enough to look at him. It meant unlocking her hands from behind his neck but it was worth it to feel the hard planes of his chest beneath her fingers.

  His smiling eyes were half open and focused totally on her face, hazy with promise and desire. Any doubt she might have had that he wanted her just as much as she wanted him were instantly swept away in that one look.

  Heartbeat for heartbeat. Strong and fierce and hot and sweet.

  ‘Rob. Do you have any of that chocolate icing left? Because I have a very ticklish spot just here—’ and she pointed to the corner of her mouth next to her upper lip ‘—which needs a large dose of licking. Think you can help with that?’

  He pulled her so quickly towards him that she almost toppled over as they took one step backwards until her back pressed against the wall of her kitchen. Out of sight of the street, she did not feel exposed when one of his hands shot up to cradle the back of her head.

  Trapped between the hard wall and the harder length of his body, Lottie only had time for one sharp breath before his warm, full lips crushed down onto hers in a kiss so fast and intense that breathing took second place to keeping up.

  His teeth nibbled her upper lip, sending shock waves of desire and wet heat surging through her body, making her beg for more and more. It was almost unbearable when that stubble grazed her throat and started making its way down to her collarbone.

  ‘I have wanted to do that since I first saw you in the gallery.’

  In a minute that mouth would be on her breast and it would be game over for any kind of sensible thought.

  The silk dress was already a crumpled wreck with the writhing, but her brain caught up with the rest of her body just long enough to realise that ripping it off here might not be such a good idea.

  ‘I’m probably still infectious, you know,’ Lottie whispered, her eyes fluttering half closed in the heady, sensuous movement of his mouth on her throat.

  ‘How are you feeling now? There is some colour back in your cheeks.’

  ‘A lot better. But what about you? I could be contagious. I would hate to be the reason why the mighty Rob goes down with a shocking head cold.’

  ‘I’ll take the risk. My mum gave it to me first. Generous as always.’ It was more of a mumbled murmur.

  Lottie’s mouth went dry. She should be embarrassed. This was what she wanted, wasn’t it?

  ‘Oh, right, I see.’

  ‘Hey. Don’t look so worried. This is meant to be fun.’

  ‘I know. It’s just that I had this vision of meeting you at one of Sean and Dee’s parties and having to go through the embarrassed silence and awkward first kissy thing which always make me cringe.’

  ‘Ah. The social etiquette of the former lovers who may or may not have parted as friends. That’s the advanced course, but somehow I don’t think that’s going to be a problem for us.’

  He tapped his middle fingers several times against his forehead. ‘Smart. And we get on. Right?’ His grin had the power to illuminate the kitchen. Oh, yeah, we get on.

  A shiver quivered across her back that had nothing to do with the cool evening air.

  Scary thoughts flittered through her mind and she tossed her head from side to side to shake them out, blowing out in short sharp breaths.

  ‘I don’t know if I can do this. Give in to my wild side. Because, actually, I don’t even know if I have a wild side.’

  ‘Are you kidding me? You are an angel dressed to tempt any man. Smoking.’

  Lottie looked down at her crumpled dress.

  ‘It will take me five minutes to change into a mini dress. Heels. Decent underwear. You can stay there and...’

  ‘That would make it way too obvious.’ He grinned and his hands got busy on the small of her back.

  ‘Then I have one more question. Do you have a condom in your wallet?’

  That made him stop what he was doing and look at her with a wide-eyed stunned expression before his mouth relaxed into the cheekiest, sexiest grin that she had ever seen.

  ‘I told you that I was a Boy Scout. Prepared for anything.’

  ‘Not for this,’ she replied and nipped his throat with her teeth.

  And she started to unbutton his shirt. Slowly and languorously, taking her time. Prolonging the pleasure.

  * * *

  A summer dawn was streaming through the patio doors when Lottie turned over in the bed and reached out for Rob’s warm chest, but there was nothing there.

  Propping herself up on one elbow, she blinked in the early morning sunlight and scanned the room.

 
Rob was standing at the wide-open window, his hands loosely touching the window frame. His long, muscular legs were languid and soft compared to the tension that was only too apparent in the wide shoulder blades that were almost touching in the middle of his back. He had tugged on his boxers, which lay low on his hips, but there was no mistaking the tightness of that magnificent backside.

  Lottie inhaled slowly, locking the image into her memory. No matter what happened going forwards, she was never going to forget last night and what Rob looked like at that moment.

  He was so gorgeous she could have looked at him all night and it would not have been enough.

  The tattoo on his arm twisted into dark eastern symbols all the way up his biceps and across his shoulder, marking him as a warrior, a man of action.

  Rob Beresford had just ruined her for any other man. Fact. And the sudden realisation made her whimper slightly at the back of her throat.

  He heard her, turned his head, and smiled.

  ‘Hey, you.’

  ‘Hey, you back,’ she whispered when her throat finally recovered.

  ‘Sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you.’ His smile made the very core of her body flutter with desire and affection. ‘Go back to sleep.’

  ‘Not without you.’ She grinned and waggled her eyebrows up and down a few times and then gave him a very saucy and over-the-top wink.

  Rob threw back his head and laughed out loud but as her reward he padded across the wooden floorboards.

  But instead of throwing himself onto her and making her morning complete, he picked up her wooden chair and dragged it closer towards the bed.

  Lottie shuffled up against her wooden bedhead and brought the duvet up to cover her bare chest, which was suddenly quivering with goosebumps in the cool breeze from the wide-open window.

  ‘Are you okay?’ She yawned. ‘Did something wake you up?’

  ‘No.’ He shook his head and reached out for her hand, lifting it to his lips so that he could kiss the backs of the knuckles. ‘I’m fine.’

  It was one of the sweetest kisses of her life and Lottie’s already tender heart just popped the last little restraining band and threatened to burst out of her chest with love for this man.