Christmas Diamonds

by Devon Vaughn Archer

  “Glad you like it.” She paused, took a sip of wine and lifted another photograph from her briefcase. “As the centerpiece of the room, I think you should have a Louis XV hand-carved-walnut king bed with patterned leather insets like this,” she said, pointing at the picture.

  “Wow.” Chase studied the picture. “It’s beautiful.”

  “I think so, too,” Paula agreed. “And I’d like to add some fluffy pillows along with a quilted duvet cover or a double-woven embossed bedspread.”

  “Sounds good to me.”

  Chase imagined himself in the bed with her, surrounded by fluffy pillows, making passionate love like two people who couldn’t get enough of one another. A wave of intense desire swept over him, and he wondered if Paula might be thinking the same thing. Surely he wasn’t the only one getting aroused and excited at the mere notion of being naked and engaged in hot, sensual, unbridled sex.

  Their clam chowder arrived, quickly stemming Chase’s libido as he turned his attention to the food.

  Chapter 6

  Paula tried hard to keep her mind off Chase, but found it to be utterly impossible. He was simply too suave in a navy suit, and his mouth, wide and ultrasexy, seemed tailor-made for kissing. The idea of their lips joined together in rhythmic smooching gave her carnal thoughts that went far beyond a kiss. She imagined them slowly and methodically removing each other’s clothes, pausing with each piece to take pleasure in every inch of their bodies, his lips leaving a burning trail down her quivering body until they united as one like love-starved intimates eager to please.

  Feeling her temperature rise and her body tremble with desire, Paula quickly pushed away the vivid images. She managed to refocus on her meal and wrapped up her presentation on refurnishing the master suite in Chase’s home.

  “I think putting less formal rattan furniture in the sitting-room area is a great idea,” Chase said while dabbing his mouth with a napkin. “You really do know your stuff.”

  Paula blushed. “I try to turn each room into something that truly embodies the client’s persona.”

  “Well, so far you’ve really hit the mark on my persona to bring out the best in the space.” Chase crinkled his eyes at her. “My dad was quite impressed with the great room.”

  Paula smiled graciously. “That’s nice to hear.” She remembered being slightly intimidated by Sylvester McCord, sensing that he would be a hard one to please. Instead, he had been very open-minded and a great client to work for, just as his son was turning out to be. “Are you and your father pretty close?” she asked Chase, curious.

  “Yeah, we’re tight,” he responded. “I can pretty much talk to him about anything, and he’ll actually listen.”

  “That’s wonderful.” Paula lifted her fork, ruminating. “What about your mother?”

  Chase paused. “The woman you met at my dad’s house is my stepmother. My real mother died when I was twelve.”

  Paula felt badly for him. “That must have been hard.”

  “Yeah, it was.” He absently moved the food around his plate. “Car accident.”

  Paula gasped. “I’m so sorry.”

  “For a while there it seemed like just a bad dream, and she would walk through the front door as though nothing had happened. But…she never did.” Chase choked back emotion. “Anyway, that was a long time ago. And I understand now that it was just her time.”

  Paula blinked. “I suppose you’re right, sad as that is.”

  “But my stepmother has been just like a mother to me,” Chase added.

  “That’s good to know,” Paula said.

  Chase ate a piece of salmon. “What about your parents?”

  “I never knew my father,” Paula said, wishing it weren’t true. “My mother sent me to live with my grandmother when I was five. We don’t see each other much these days.”

  This was one of Paula’s biggest regrets—not having her birth mother around to share the ups and downs of life with. But it wasn’t her choice. Her mother had decided she couldn’t handle raising a child on her own and had found someone else to take the responsibility.

  Chase’s brow furrowed. “Wow. Where’s your mother now?”

  “The last I heard, she was living with a man in the Bahamas.”

  “I’m sure you’ve struggled with her decision making. Losing a mother to tragedy is one thing, but if she’s still alive yet mostly absent from your life…”

  Paula stiffened. “I stopped feeling sorry for myself a long time ago. We all do what we have to do for whatever reason. I’ve just had to deal with it and move on with my life.”

  “Is your grandmother still alive?” Chase asked.

  “Yes, thank goodness.” Paula smiled at the thought. “She’s seventy-one years old and still has a lot of spunk. Isa has been my rock over the years.”

  “Well, that’s good.” Chase reached for a slice of bread. “Everyone needs such a person in their life.”

  “That’s true.” Paula felt they were both fortunate in that regard, as his father obviously filled this role in Chase’s life. But what about his romantic life? She sensed there was no one serious there right now, meaning he was on the market. So was she. The notion excited Paula. As did learning more about the handsome man before her.

  “So tell me about the diamond business?” she asked with fascination.

  Chase gazed at her. “What do you want to know about it?”

  “Well, what is it that you do, exactly? I mean, in terms a layperson can understand.”

  Chase leaned back thoughtfully in his chair. “As president of the company, I do a little bit of everything. I purchase diamonds and other gemstones, advise clients, promote the company, do a little design work and more.”

  “Sounds impressive.”

  Chase chuckled. “No big deal, really. I just do my job like anyone else.”

  “Have you done any other type of work?” Paula asked curiously.

  “In college, I worked at the front desk in my dorm, put in some all-nighters at a local grocery store and even did a little bartending.”

  “Hmm, so I imagine you were probably pretty good at getting those college girls drunk?” Paula teased.

  He chuckled. “Well, I usually knew when they reached their limit even if they didn’t.”

  “Good answer.” She liked him better all the time.

  Chase smiled. “I’ve been a jeweler ever since the good old days,” he told her.

  “It obviously agrees with you.”

  “I’m happy with my job most of the time,” Chase said.

  “Your dad must be proud of you,” Paula speculated.

  Chase nodded. “Yeah, I guess he is. He doesn’t exactly pat me on the back every other day for a job well done, but we both seem to be on the same wavelength when it comes to running the company.”

  “That’s great.”

  “Not to say that we don’t have our disagreements from time to time,” Chase said evenly. “It usually comes down to who can be the most stubborn.”

  “Sounds a lot like me and my grandmother,” Paula confessed.

  Chase grinned. “I know we’re both smart enough to let them win most of the time.”

  “Exactly,” she agreed.

  As Chase refilled their wineglasses, Paula sensed he was a man who knew how to take charge on a date. Not that she considered this a date. Or maybe it was, now that they had concluded their business and she had given him the estimate of costs. Paula realized that she enjoyed spending time with Chase whatever the purpose. He seemed to feel the same way.

  Chase gazed at Paula over the rim of his glass. “So, how did you turn a girl’s dream into professional success as an interior decorator?”

  “Through sheer determination and a good talking to by my grandmother,” she had to admit.

  “That may be, but I think you left out one thing,” Chase suggested.

  Paula’s eyes widened. “What?”

  He gave her a straight look. “Talent. You really know how to arrange and
decorate a room so everything flows naturally. That’s something you can’t teach. It has to come from within.”

  “Keep that up and I’m going to really get bigheaded,” she said, only half joking.

  Chase laughed. “I doubt that. Something tells me you have both feet on the ground as much as I do.”

  That was a compliment Paula was happy to accept. It also told her more about the man and how he took his success in stride, which was a quality she appreciated. She was excited at the prospect of getting to know Chase better.

  “I think you’re right about that,” she said, her voice betraying the common philosophy.

  “Tell me something I don’t know.” He spoke with assurance.

  Paula chuckled. “Well, I happen to be a big Motown fan. I love all those great artists like the Four Tops, Temptations, Supremes, Mary Wells, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder and Michael Jackson…”

  “I like them, too.” Chase flashed his teeth. “But I would’ve thought you would be more into Beyoncé, Alicia Keys, Seal or other similar artists.”

  “Oh, I think they’re cool, too,” Paula admitted.

  “So you have a broad range of musical tastes?”

  “Yes, you could say that, including a little jazz and classical music.”

  “Interesting.” He hummed. “Maybe someday we can check out a concert.”

  Paula liked that idea. “Maybe we could,” she said coyly.

  Ten minutes later, Chase walked Paula out to her car. There was a bit of a chill in the early November air, and she would have welcomed being warmed by his strong arms. Or was that asking too much at this point?

  “Thanks for putting together what looks to be a great concept,” Chase told her.

  “I had fun with it,” she confessed. “Of course, we’d better wait till everything’s in place for the final judgment.”

  He nodded. “I look forward to seeing the finished product.”

  Paula quivered. She wasn’t sure if it was from being outside or from the images dancing in her head of sharing some romantic moments with him. Was he thinking the same thing?

  Chase stepped closer. “I enjoyed our evening.”

  “Me, too.” Paula saw no reason to deny it, and obviously he didn’t, either.

  “Perhaps we can do it again sometime—apart from business.”

  “I would like that,” she said, happy he’d said he wanted to spend more time with her.

  He licked his lips. “I was hoping you’d say that.”

  Paula could feel Chase’s warm breath on her cheeks. She longed to feel his lips on hers.

  Seemingly reading her thoughts, Chase tilted his head ever so slightly and gave Paula a soft, succulent kiss. It was more than enough for Paula to follow his lead. She stood on tiptoes and brought their lips together again, kissing him generously. She took in the woodsy scent of his cologne, which made him all the more appealing.

  Chase put his arms around Paula’s waist. She closed her eyes and saw stars. The kiss had left her breathless. Though Paula had never been too comfortable with public displays of affection, she felt she would kiss Chase McCord anywhere.

  Paula drew back from Chase, feeling the sting of his lips on hers. “That was nice, but I think we’d better leave it there for now.”

  “All right.” Chase’s eyes twinkled with contentment. “And, yes, it was quite nice.”

  She suddenly felt warmed to the bone. “I’ll call you to set up a time for the work to begin on your master suite,” she said.

  “I look forward to hearing from you.” She unlocked the car with her remote and he opened the door for her. “Have a safe drive.”

  “I will,” she promised. “See you soon.”

  “Bye for now.”

  Paula thought. She appreciated his thoughtfulness in opening the door for her. It was not something she was used to with men, but she welcomed it nonetheless. In fact, Chase was more of an all-around man than she had encountered in some time, if ever. She smiled to herself. The kiss had left Paula reeling with desire. It was definitely something to build on.

  “He kissed me,” Paula told her grandmother that evening.

  Isabelle was sitting on a recliner. “Oh, really?”

  “Well, actually we kissed each other.” Paula couldn’t help but confide in the one person with whom she had always been able to share the best and worst of her relationships. Not that dinner and a kiss constituted a relationship, but it still ranked in the “best” category in both respects.

  “A good start,” Isabelle stated with a nice smile on her face. “If the young man is anything like you’ve described, then I’d say he could be a real find for you.”

  Paula hated to burst her bubble yet didn’t want to give Isa the wrong idea, either. “It’s still way too soon to know just how real of a find he is. Or if anything meaningful will come out of this.”

  Isabelle took her reading glasses off. “No reason to look at the glass as half-empty, child,” she insisted. “Maybe Chase won’t wind up as the man of your dreams. Only the good Lord knows for sure. But if it’s meant to happen, Chase could very well be the one who can put that sparkling diamond ring on your finger like the one I’ve got.”

  “Whoa…” Paula’s mouth opened even as she noted Isa admiring her ring. “No one’s talking about becoming engaged, much less getting married anytime soon.”

  Paula would love to walk down the aisle when the time was right with a man who was just as willing. Whether Chase fell into that category was unclear at this point. Even if the man was totally past losing his wife, it didn’t mean he had any desire to go beyond dating a woman in the foreseeable future.

  Isabelle wrung her hands. “Nothing says one can’t dream. That’s what grandmothers do where it concerns their grandchildren. Besides, you’re both young, successful, single people with your whole lives ahead of you. Since you’re obviously attracted to each other, there’s no reason why it can’t potentially blossom into marriage. Maybe sooner than you might ever have imagined.”

  Paula laughed. “I think we still need to have our first official date before we elope.”

  “There will be no such thing,” Isabelle said seriously. “When the time comes, and you’re ready to say I do, it had better be a proper wedding. If I couldn’t walk my daughter down the aisle, I most surely want to do it for my granddaughter.”

  It saddened Paula to think that her mother and Isa never had the type of relationship they deserved. The same was true where it concerned Paula and her mother. She would never want to deprive her grandmother of witnessing her marriage, which Paula hoped would happen while Isa was still alive.

  Paula got up from the couch and hugged her. “I promise when that day comes, it won’t be an elopement. I want all the trimmings of a big wedding, with my favorite grandmother sharing in every bit of the joy.”

  “Thank you for that.” Tears welled in Isabelle’s eyes. “I only want you to be happy.”

  Paula beamed at her grandmother. “You make me happy.”

  “A good man can make you happier.” Isabelle took a breath. “Maybe you should invite Chase over so I can get to know him.”

  “I need to get to know him first,” cautioned Paula. “It’s important to me that we take our time to get comfortable with each other. Then I’ll let you meet him.”

  Isabelle’s eyes twinkled. “Fair enough. I don’t want you to rush into anything. Heaven knows how that can backfire.”

  Paula bit her lip, thinking about putting nearly everything she had into her past relationships only to see them fall flat. If it was her destiny to be with Chase, she wouldn’t force the issue. Something told her he was of the same mind. Paula thought about the sexual chemistry between them that had deepened when they kissed. She doubted any amount of reason could slow down the inevitable and spontaneous passions they seemed headed toward like a pair of runaway freight trains.

  “It was just a kiss,” Chase said, standing over the pool table in his father’s recreation room. In truth
, he saw it as much more. Paula was a good kisser, and he believed she was just as into their lips smooching as he was.

  “Uh-huh.” Sylvester studied his son. “Remember, you’re talking to your father.”

  Chase grinned, deciding he might as well come clean. “All right, so it did mean something. I’m just not sure what it meant yet.”

  “I can fill in the blank,” his father said astutely. “It means you’re finally becoming human again instead of going through the motions as a man caught up in what was.”

  Chase put his cue stick on the table and sized up his next shot. “It hasn’t been easy being on my own,” he said truthfully.

  “I know it hasn’t. That’s why I’m glad to see you are moving beyond a few dates with women who do little for you, other than provide eye candy, and taking concrete steps toward having a true lady in your life again.” Sylvester rubbed his nose. “Especially this particular lady.”

  Chase called the shot, watching the ball hit a wall and roll into the pocket. “So what’s up with you and Paula?” he asked suspiciously, as though the two were conspiring behind his back. “Is there something that I should know about?”

  Sylvester shot quickly then chuckled. “Only that I have a fine eye for the lady I think would be great with my son. Never mind the fact she’s also a damned good interior decorator with her own business.”

  “Did you ever tell Paula anything about me?” Chase asked curiously, wondering if she’d had an edge in seemingly hitting all the right marks to capture his attention.

  Sylvester’s right brow rose. “Such as?”

  “That I’m a wealthy and lonely widower?”

  “I didn’t tell her anything, other than you were looking for an interior decorator.” Sylvester ran his hand over his mouth. “If you’re wondering if she might be after your money, think again. From what I know, she’s got a thriving business. One of our biggest customers recommended her to redo this very room. That’s why I gave you the scoop. It was totally up to you to contact her, which you did. As for the lonely part, you don’t have a monopoly on that, son. Are you having second thoughts about Paula all of a sudden?”