Tempt Me
Page 8
* * * *
Jesse knocked on the front door and found himself facing a very angry Joey Santini. The smile she always offered him was nowhere to be found.
“You have some nerve.”
“Josephina, settle down,” Papa said from behind her. “Why don’t you let the boy inside? It’s late.”
She pursed her lips. She did not look like she was going to agree with her husband, but then she stepped aside. “Let’s go in the kitchen.”
“No. There’s knives in there. Why don’t you let me handle this?”
He chuckled, but Papa shook his head. Apparently, he worried about Jesse’s life if he let Joey near a knife.
“Okay. But if he doesn’t fix this, I get a run at him.”
With that, she stomped off. Papa sighed. “Artists.”
“I hear that, Stewart.”
He said nothing about that and led Jesse into the kitchen. “Kind of late for a visit.”
“I made a decision and I wanted to handle it right now.”
Papa shook his head. “I should beat the shit out of you. That girl has been hurting for days now. Every night she’s out there working and nothing much comes of it.”
That gave him a little kernel of hope. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.” He gave Jesse a narrowed look. “I didn’t have a girl, so I’m not used to this.”
Jesse nodded. “The first time MJ had her heart broken, you would have thought the world ended. And not just for her. All of us suffered.”
“Yeah, well, you know and so you’ll understand this. If you don’t fix it, I’ll let Joey loose on you. And believe me, she’ll hurt you a lot worse than I could.”
He nodded knowing it was true.
“Make her happy, Jesse. That’s all any good woman wants.”
“Yes, sir.”
Papa left him alone at that point, so Jesse girded his loins and headed out to the studio, hoping that he could live up to that promise.
* * * *
She heard the door creep open. It wasn’t Papa, who had been avoiding her for days. She didn’t blame him. All she had been doing since that night was crying. And then raging. Then crying some more. For a man who had only raised boys, Papa had panicked each and every time.
Joey, on the other hand, had understood. She had let Zoe cry, dried her tears and fed her chocolate.
When she turned around expecting Joey, she was surprised to find Jesse standing there. He looked…wonderful. Damn the man. He looked like he hadn’t had any trouble sleeping like she had. It made her want to throw things at him.
“What are you doing here?” She shook her head. “Never mind, I don’t care what you are doing here. Go away.”
“No.”
His reasonable tone had her temper simmering. “I swear if you don’t leave, I’ll tell Joey.”
“She knows.”
Well, that took some of the wind out of her sails. She sighed and walked over to the sink. She’d been trying to sculpt, but nothing had been working. Except for when she had her arm broken, she had always been able to use art to work through her issues. Sculpting had soothed her.
Since that night he’d dumped her, she hadn’t been able to do anything.
“What do you want?”
“I’ve been kind of busy.”
She looked at him over her shoulder, then went back to cleaning off her tools. “I didn’t ask. I want to know what you want.”
“I kind of have to explain myself to you.”
“Yeah. You’re a putz. Go away.”
He chuckled. “I officially got my orders today.”
She turned to face him. “So, you’re taking the job.”
He nodded, but he watched her warily. “First, I don’t have a choice. I have to take it or get out. Secondly, it’s something I really want to do. ”
“And that is?”
“It’s got a big fancy job title, but basically, I will be working with other countries in an outreach kind of way. It’s new, so it might not last, but I want to help.”
Her heart sank a little more. Of course he did. It was in his DNA to help others, to be of public service. Which made her like him even more. “Oh. I guess it’s something that will help you with that star.”
He shrugged as he continued to watch her. She looked away and pretended to be cleaning off her instruments again, but her hands were shaking so hard that she couldn’t control them.
He walked closer to the side of the sink. “Actually, the General says it won’t help or hurt, and to tell you the truth, I don’t care about making a star.”
She glanced up at him quickly. “What?”
“I don’t care about being a general. I never really did. At least, not recently.”
She rolled her eyes. “Don’t tell me it’s because of me that you don’t want to be a general?”
“You’re not the reason.”
Zoe looked at him. “What?”
“I decided several years ago I didn’t think it was for me. Or, at least, if I can’t get it on my terms, I don’t want it. And it wasn’t really you, but the thought of you.”
Maybe crying for days on end had made her an idiot because he wasn’t making any sense. “What do you mean by that?”
“I mean that I wanted a family, a wife, and I wanted to be part of their lives. Being military, I’m going to have to go away at times, but if I was going for a star, I knew I would have to give up more. I don’t want to.”
“Your father did it.”
“And he regrets it. But after Mom died, part of him died with her. Kind of corny, but now, I see that. He threw himself into work because then he didn’t have to think about losing Mom.”
“You two talked?”
He smiled. “Yeah, we talked. In fact, we cleared the air and he did help me decide about things.”
“About what? Me?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh.” Well, great. If the dad didn’t want her, then there was no need to go on. This was like pulling a Band-Aid off, one centimeter at a time. It would have never worked anyway. Military guys like him didn’t get married to women like her.
“Do you want to know what he said?”
She shook her head.
“Really? I thought you would enjoy it.”
She fought the urge to glance at him. “What did he say?”
“He said if I let you get away, I was a dumbass.”
Zoe looked at him to see if he was joking. “What?”
“Exact words, I swear.”
She blinked and realized the tears had started to fall again. Good lord, she was crying again. She wasn’t a woman who cried and here she was blubbering again.
“Oh, don’t do that, Zoe. I’m no good with a crying woman.”
She shook her head, trying her best to figure out what he was saying.
“What?”
“I said, I’m no good with a crying woman.”
“No. What are you talking about? You’re not making any sense. Your father called you a dumbass. Why?”
Jesse drew in a deep breath, then stepped forward. When he cupped her face with his hands, he brushed away the tears she had barely noticed. He was no longer smiling.
“He said if I let someone like you disappear from my life, then I was a dumbass. I agreed with him, and that’s why I’m here.”
“But, I’m not who he would pick for you.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
“I’m an artist. I’m not officer wife material.”
He snorted. “Dad seemed to think you would. Said I needed someone who would keep me on my toes. And you do that, babe.”
“You’re going to NATO.”
“Doesn’t mean you can’t come with me.”
She pulled away from him and stepped back from him—away from the temptation he presented. Hadn’t she learned anything from her experience? Sure, Jesse was a good guy. A man who stood for honor and integrity. Hated his boss because he cheated on his wife, for cripes sake. But dam
mit, just because she loved him…
Shit, she loved him.
“Zoe, are you okay? You look a little pale.”
She swallowed but found her throat dry. She loved him so much. The idea of moving to Europe with him sparkled in front of her but she couldn’t do it. Wouldn’t. It would be insane to give up her life here just for a guy she was involved with.
“I’m not moving half way around the world for some guy.”
“How about your husband?”
She blinked. “What?”
“I’m asking you to marry me.”
“But…you barely know me.”
He shook his head. “I know you, Zoe. I might not know everything there is to know about you. Hell, do most couples know before they get married?”
“Well, that’s a fine argument.”
“Seriously, getting married isn’t about how much I know about you. It’s about how much I love you. And I do love you, Zoe. I can’t think of making that trip to Belgium without you.”
He pulled her into his arms before she could come to terms with what he was saying. “Marry me, Zoe.”
“Marry you?”
He nibbled on her bottom lip. “Yeah, make me legitimate. Otherwise, I am going to have to convince you to live in sin with me.”
“Jesse, you can’t mean it. I would make you crazy.”
“What part of I love you don’t you understand? And have you been paying attention at all? Seriously, woman, we haven’t had any issues, other than the fact that I’m trying to tell you that you are the center of my universe and you’re kind of ruining it.”
She studied him then, slowly, her mouth curved and before she knew it, she was chuckling.
“Leave it to my by the book Marine to screw up a proposal so badly. I bet you don’t have a ring.”
“Nope, I decided tonight you had to marry me and drove straight here. Plus, I figured a woman like you would like to help design it.” He shifted his feet. “Of course, you haven’t said you would marry me yet.”
She laughed and hugged him close. “Yes, Jesse, I’ll marry you.”
He kissed her then. When he pulled back, he smiled.
“Don’t cry, babe. I don’t ever want to make you cry again.”
She smiled through the tears. “I’m sure you will. Just like I’ll make you crazy. But, we’ll have each other.”
Epilogue
Zoe giggled as Jesse tossed her onto the king-sized bed in their hotel suite. She bounced up and he covered her before she could do it again.
“Not so fast, Mrs. Johnson,” he said with a sexy growl. “What was all that tickling me while I was trying to open the door?”
“I thought you liked a challenge.”
He chuckled. “I almost dropped you. Maybe I should have just so you would have learned your lesson.”
He didn’t wait for her response. Instead, he leaned down and gave her a slow easy kiss. By the time he pulled back, her head was spinning. “Hey, there, Mrs. Johnson.”
“That’s at least the tenth time I’ve heard you use that name since the ceremony.”
“I like the sound of it.”
“I’m still amazed we could get married so fast.”
“You told Joey you didn’t need a big ceremony and you know that set her on the warpath. When she sets her mind to something, there is no changing Joey Santini’s course of action.”
It had been three weeks since she had agreed to marry Jesse and Joey had taken care of everything. From the dress to the chapel to the reception, nothing was left out. Joey had even made sure she found them a massive suite in downtown DC which was kind of surprising. The most touching moment was having Papa give her away. He hadn’t said anything when she asked him to do the honor, just nodded and walked away. No matter what the other guys said, Papa Santini was the sweetest man in the world—other than her sexy Marine.
“It also gave me some time with Jack.”
She could tell from his frown he was still worried about his brother. “There’s nothing wrong with your brother.”
“He called about his garden about five times today. He is obsessed with it.”
“Hmm.”
“What?”
For such a smart man, he could be pretty slow at times. “He complained more about the neighbor than anything else.”
“Yeah?”
“So, I think it has more to do with her than the garden or her dog.”
For a second he just stared at her then his expression lightened. “Well, if it’s true, that’s a relief.”
“Now, sir, I would like to figure out how to undo all the buttons on this dress uniform.”
“Is that a fact?”
“Yeah, because I’ve never seen you so dressed up and I have to say, it made my little heart go pitter-patter.”
“Yeah? Well, how about I show you something else to make your heart go wild.”
And with that, he rolled them over the bed. She laughed knowing that Jesse would be the man who would always send her heart racing and soothe her soul. A woman couldn’t ask for more than that.
* * * *
If you enjoyed Tempt Me, a review on Goodreads or a bookstore outlet would be greatly appreciated!
Coming May 20th, the last book of the Semper Fi Marines series, Touch Me.
A man trying to forget.
Jackson Johnson had always planned to spend his life in the Marines serving his country—that is until he came back from a mission with memories he’d rather not have. He feels like he’s circling the drain until he meets the new tenant next door. An altercation with her unruly dog has them at odds. That is until he finds himself kissing her.
A woman who doesn’t have time for love.
Veterinarian Hannah Richmond doesn’t have time for the surly Marine or any man for that matter. Still, resisting his kisses proves futile and soon she finds herself falling for Jack. For the first time in a really long time she discovers she might just want to try for that happily ever after—that is until her past comes back to haunt her.
A Marine determined to prove his love.
Jack knows Hannah is pushing him away because she wants to keep him safe but there is one thing she needs to understand: this Marine will never retreat until she surrenders.
About Melissa Schroeder
From an early age, Melissa loved to read. First, it was the books her mother read to her including her two favorites, Winnie the Pooh and the Beatrix Potter books. She cut her preteen teeth on Trixie Belden and read and reviewed To Kill a Mockingbird in middle school. It wasn’t until she was in college that she tried to write her first stories, which were full of angst and pain, and really not that fun to read or write. After trying several different genres, she found romance in a Linda Howard book.
Since the publication of her first book in 2004, Melissa has had fifty romances published. She writes in genres from historical suspense to modern day erotic romance to futuristics and paranormals. Included in those releases is the bestselling Harmless series. In 2011, Melissa branched out into self-publishing with A Little Harmless Submission and the popular military spinoff, Infatuation: A Little Harmless Military Romance. Along the way she has garnered an epic nomination, a multitude of reviewer’s recommended reads, over five Capa nods from TRS, three nominations for AAD Bookies and regularly tops the bestseller lists on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. She was named one of the top ten best selling authors on All Romance Ebooks. In September of 2013, Melissa made the USA Today Bestseller list with her book, The Santinis Collection.
Since she spent her childhood as a military brat, Melissa swore never to marry military. But, as we all know, Fate has her way with mortals. She married a man who went into the Air Force, raised her own military brats-both human and canine-and now is happily residing in Virginia with her retired hubby.
You can connect with Mel all over the web:
WEBSITE
TWITTER
FACEBOOK FAN PAGE
HARMLESS ADDICTS
; THE HARMLESS SERIES
THE CURSED CLAN
Or email her at: Contact@MelissaSchroeder.net
Other Books by Melissa Schroeder
Harmless
A Little Harmless Sex
A Little Harmless Pleasure
A Little Harmless Obsession
A Little Harmless Lie
A Little Harmless Addiction
A Little Harmless Submission
A Little Harmless Fascination
A Little Harmless Fantasy
A Little Harmless Ride
A Little Harmless Military Romance
Infatuation
Possession
Surrender
The Harmless Shorts
Prelude to a Fantasy
The Santinis
Leonardo
Marco
Gianni
Vicente
The Santinis Collection
Semper Fi Marines
Tease Me
Tempt Me
The Cursed Clan
Callum
Angus
By Blood
Desire by Blood
Once Upon An Accident
The Accidental Countess
Lessons in Seduction
The Spy Who Loved Me
Leather and Lace
The Seduction of Widow McEwan
Leather and Lace—Print anthology
Texas Temptations
Conquering India
Delilah’s Downfall
Hawaiian Holidays
Mele Kalikimaka, Baby
Sex on the Beach
Getting Lei’d
Bounty Hunters, Inc
For Love or Honor
Sinner’s Delight
The Sweet Shoppe
Turning Paige
Cowboy Up
Tempting Prudence
Connected Books
Seducing the Saint