“For years, I loved Devon and along comes that skinny bitch. Just like that.” She snapped her fingers, her eyes angry and shifty. “He was gone to marry me. She stole him before I even had a chance. God, I hate her and him for what they did to me.”
“Bitter?” Poochie asked pettily with an arched brow.
Alicia nodded, her face serious. “Yup, and you should be too. Girl, you’re the talk of the town. ”
“And?” Poochie snapped, grabbing her apron from behind the shelf to tie around her waist. “No offense, Alicia, but it’s been some years since all that went down with Devon and Chloe. Let it go, huh?”
“I have my Luther now. He’s no Devon but he’ll do just fine,” she answered defensively as she eyed her coworker.
“Look, I broke up with Deshawn, a’ight. This is just his way of trying to pay me back,” Poochie said, repeating the lie she had already told to so many people that she was beginning to believe it herself.
∞
Anika stayed around the house for the next couple of days. She checked in with The Haven back in Jersey, looked over some papers they faxed her, and even started researching a grant proposal she was writing. Deshawn’s calls continued, and the flowers came like clockwork every day, but she was still holding on strong to her wish to stay uninvolved with him emotionally.
Needing some serious rest and relaxation, Anika tied her hair down securely with a silk scarf before sliding on her swim cap. The pale pink swimsuit she wore was very revealing on her tall, voluptuous frame with its high-cut legs and strapless design. Anika loved the suit to death because it complemented her bronze complexion and full lush curves.
With Deshawn not expected back until tomorrow she was still able to enjoy the luxury of wearing the revealing suit without him appearing suddenly to ogle her. “Thank the heavens for small favors,” she mumbled, as she headed out of her bedroom and down the hall toward the glass-enclosed pool that was the centerpiece of the uniquely designed house.
Using the remote control, Anika opened the retractable ceilings, emblazoning the turquoise, teal, and white decor with the sun’s rays. It seemed as if a million diamonds skittered across the water’s surface, making it even more inviting.
Anika plunged beneath the cool water, loving the feel of being submerged and totally surrounded by the element. She loved the feel of the water pressed against every inch of her body like a lover’s hand. Holding her breath, she touched her feet to the tiled bottom and pushed off to rise to the top like a missile, trying to erase her thoughts of Deshawn.
“This is just what I needed.” She sighed, relaxing her body to float gently upon her back on the surface. She closed her eyes against the beaming rays from above with a contented sigh.
“The most beautiful mermaid ever.”
Anika’s body tensed and she felt herself sink, but she forced herself to relax. Taking a deep breath, she opened one eye and looked directly up at Deshawn’s handsome face as he knelt by the poolside in nothing but his swim trunks.
“You really are one gorgeous woman,” he told her, his eyes intently on her face as his eyes leisurely perused the enticing sight of her voluptuous body framed by the water.
Anika quickly manipulated her body so that only her head was above the water. Her eyes widened as she looked at Deshawn slowly from head to toe. The bare masculine, but very beautiful feet, hairy, muscled legs with strong, smooth thighs, white trunks that gleamed against his bronze skin and molded to his semiaroused shaft like a second skin. Her eyes paused there for a second. Okay, a few seconds, before continuing to his washboard abdomen and muscular chest scattered with fine, soft hairs.
Would she ever stop wanting him?
“You’re back early,” she said, almost accusing.
“I missed you,” he said, just before he dived into the center of the pool with hardly a splash.
Anika turned her head quickly to keep water from getting into her eyes. Only to open them and turn her head to see Deshawn’s boxers float by her. Before she could blink, he emerged directly in front of her, his face even more beautiful drenched in water with the blazing sunlight reflecting off the tiny droplets that clung to him.
Anika’s heart skipped a beat as he moved closer to her and she swallowed hard just knowing he was totally nude and close to her. My God, he’s beautiful, she was thinking, even as she moved back away from him in the water that suddenly seemed hot. Steamy even.
Deshawn moved closer, pursuing her, his eyes— those warm, charming ebony eyes—intently locked on her lips.
Suddenly the slick, unrelenting tiled wall of the pool pressed against her back and buttocks. “Damn it,” she whispered, knowing as much as she wanted to possess the strength to resist him, she just couldn’t.
Deshawn placed each of his strong arms on either side of her, trapping her, as he pressed his body to the length of hers with one deliberate purpose in mind: kissing the woman he loved.
And that he did.
First a tender, tear-evoking press upon her gaped and luscious lips. Then the total wrecking of all her senses by gently plunging his tongue to tangle with her own with a deep soul-searing moan.
Anika felt herself relaxing, her head slowly tilting to the side as he ravished her lips like the skilled lover he was. And so the tango began. That moist, intimate dance of their tongues in that heated space between their lips. The gentle pressure of the water floated up against their entwined limbs and intensified it all.
Deshawn’s heart hammered against his rib cage, his lengthy arousal stood strong in the water, his hands moved to grasp her face lovingly. The love and devotion he felt for her exploded inside him until he was moved beyond words. Almost.
“Anika, I love you. I. . . love . . . you,” he told her passionately, his forehead touched down upon hers, his husky words softly breezing against her parted lips.
She wanted so much to believe him. She wanted so much to release the love she had for him. But all the trust was gone. How could she ever forgive him for his deceit?
She twisted out of his grasp, sinking beneath the beautiful clear depths to dash between his open legs. She swam as if the very devil were on her heels, quickly reaching the other end of the pool. Without ever looking back, Anika left the pool, grabbed a towel from the rack, and fled from him again.
∞
A couple of days later Anika was desperately wishing she had drowned Deshawn in the pool. She screamed at the top of her lungs. It only echoed against the walls of the room in which she was locked. Locked!
That morning when she got up she found a note that she thought was from Chloe asking her to meet her at the twins’ grandparents’ cottage. Since Chloe told her that the twins were seriously thinking of renovating the cottage, she assumed Chloe was there investigating and snooping around. So she followed the directions and drove there.
Her SUV was not parked outside the lovely cottage when Anika pulled up, but the front door was wide open. Anika just assumed it was parked in the back. “Chloe,” she called out. As soon as she stepped over the threshold she realized from that dusty, stale air that the rest of the house was vacant. She walked through the rooms with the sheet-covered furniture.
“Chloe?” she called again in question. She reached the last and largest bedroom at the back of the house.
Here the furniture was uncovered and dust-free. Vases of silk flowers were everywhere. The bed was made with white satin sheets. Candles sat waiting to be lit. A picnic basket sat atop a wooden dresser.
But no Chloe.
Anika smelled a big six-foot-two rat.
The door closed shut behind her. She whirled around in surprise and bit back fear. Hurried steps brought her back to the door where she tried like the devil to open it.
Several expletives echoed against the walls as twenty minutes rolled by and her captor hadn’t made himself known to her. Not as if she didn’t know who the culprit was. Any attempts at escape were futile. The windows were open and emitting a cool, refreshing bree
ze, but they were too small to fit through.
It was all so neatly arranged: Chloe’s note, the cottage, the romantic setting, the food.
“I’ll kill him,” she swore.
Her heels clicked against the wooden floor as she paced in anger. Time continued to pass. Anika became tired and bored. She longed for her cell phone, but it was in her purse, which she had left in the car. “Lot of good it’ll do in there,” she muttered, slumping down onto the queen-sized bed.
Sleep claimed her and she lay down with dreams of making a eunuch out of Deshawn. That made her smile even as she slept.
∞
Anika moaned in contentment as she pressed her body forward against the heat of another body. A body that was warm and solid. Masculine and—
One of her mocha eyes popped open as she felt the soft, curly hairs tickle against her lips. A smooth, brown expanse of skin and muscle filled her line of vision. Muscled arms held her body close. Her limbs were entangled with legs that were toned and hairy. And she definitely felt a snake-like erection pressed into the soft swell of her stomach. Without a moment’s hesitation Anika opened her mouth wide and then clamped down on a chunk of flesh with her teeth.
Deshawn yelled out sharply in pain, using the palm of his hand to release Anika’s grip on him by pressing it against her forehead. Her lips made a plop as he succeeded. Scrambling, he jumped from the bed to stand in a karate stance, with nothing on but a pair of jeans as he eyed her warily.
“Don’t you know kidnapping is a crime?” she spat vehemently, jumping from the bed herself to stand on the opposite side. “Let me out of here before I plant my size nine and a half where the sun don’t shine.”
She was an advocate of nonviolence, but he didn’t know that.
Deshawn cut his eyes from where he was studying the angry red oval-shaped bruise on his chest. A mocking brow rose in disbelief. “I don’t think so, darling,” he drawled, sounding more like Devon before he turned his attention back to his injury.
Something inside her snapped. She saw a kaleidoscope of reds like a bull about to charge a matador. But she definitely wasn’t yelling “ole” when she tore across the bed headed straight for his arrogant neck with outstretched hands.
Deshawn looked up just in time to see her coming. His eyes widened like saucers and he dodged to the left to avoid her. Turning and backing away from her, Deshawn reached out his hands to try and halt her. “Wait, beautiful. Calm down,” he told her with one of those ridiculous toothy grins of his.
“What is so damn funny?” she shrieked, looking frantically around for something, anything, to throw.
Her eyes lighted upon a clear vase filled with a beautiful lavender silk floral arrangement. Far too pretty to be destroyed. Hell with it.
Deshawn dodged as the entire arrangement, vase and all, whizzed past his head to crash loudly against the wall. A saucer from the picnic basket followed that, and then a dinner roll.
Deshawn took advantage of Anika’s pause, as she searched for something else to throw, to dash across the room and securely capture her in his strong arms. “That’s enough of that,” he told her with a command, his lips close to her ear as he held her writhing body tightly from behind.
Anika absolutely hated that her nipples hardened to tight buds or that she enjoyed the warmth of his groin pressed intimately against the soft curve of her buttocks. She continued her futile struggle against his strength.
There was so much he wanted to tell her, so much he wanted to explain. This final and, yes, perhaps extreme attempt to woo this woman he loved was a last-ditch effort. True, he loved her even though he had doubted he would ever find his heart lost to a woman. Still, even with his love he had pride, self-love, and common sense as well. He knew he could not make her return his love.
And so he gave his future with Anika just twenty-four hours. There, in the cottage, was their last chance. After that he refused to try anymore. He was a man in love but he was a man, a Jamison, and enough was enough!
Chapter 17
I Don't Want To Do Anything Else
“Deshawn, you are continuing to hold me here against my will,” Anika began slowly, after yet another hour of their isolation in the bedroom passed. “This is called a crime.”
Deshawn rolled onto his back, placing his hands behind his head. “Are you going to call the police?” he asked, bold and daring now that she had calmed down considerably.
“Yes,” Anika answered quickly.
“Liar,” he teased.
Anika knew that with Deshawn’s carefree attitude anything was possible, but even she never would have thought he would lock them in a room together. “Deshawn, this is ridiculous. You can’t possibly be serious about us staying in this room until tomorrow morning,” she told him, incredulous.
Deshawn sat up in the middle of the bed. “Twenty-four hours is all I ask. I’ve tried everything else I can think of: flowers, public declaration of love, gifts. I’m trying to convince you that I am in love with you.”
Anika slashed her hand through the air. “Look, will you stop saying that?”
“No,” he answered simply, his expression serious as he looked at her.
Against her wishes, her heart did a somersault from the heat of his eyes on her. Deep inside, locked within a small area of her heart, Anika wanted Deshawn’s true love. The rational part of her wouldn’t unlock the door. As charming and as sexy as this southern brother was, Anika didn’t trust him one bit.
“You are so beautiful when I’m stroking inside you and you explode,” he told her, his voice deep and soothing.
Anika shivered visibly.
“It’s one of the two times I think you are your most beautiful,” he continued.
Anika thought his eyes were his best feature. Deep, dark, and so intense. At that moment she felt herself sinking in an ebony abyss. So she blinked and looked away, freeing herself.
“But you’re even more gorgeous when you’re angry.” Deshawn leaned his body slightly to the side to try to recapture her gaze. “You’re breathtaking.”
Anika said nothing, deciding to ignore him as she moved to the door. “Now, we can do this nice or we can do it nasty—”
“Sounds good to me.”
“Open the damn door, Deshawn Jamison!”
“Not until the morning. Come on and enjoy this seclusion. It’s just you and me. We can enjoy our picnic and talk, learn some more about each other.”
“Oh, I know you all right.”
“No, that’s the problem, Anika,” he told her, rising from the bed to move toward her. “You think you know me.”
“Do you really think twenty-four hours is going to change the anger I have for you about how you used me in New York?” she asked, her voice exasperated.
“Are you afraid to let me try?” he countered, his eyes daring her.
“Damn right. You’re an opportunist, a liar, a manipulator, a philanderer, a womanizer—shall I go on?”
“I was those things, but not anymore, Anika. Maybe it’s the boomerang thing but I’ve finally fallen in love with a woman and she claims not to love me back.”
“Claims!” Anika shrieked with a wide-eyed expression.
“Claims,” Deshawn repeated firmly, sitting down on the edge of the bed. ‘You loved me in New York, you love me now. You’re just fighting it like hell. If you give me half the chance I’ll love and cherish you the way you deserve. ”
“You can’t be serious, Deshawn.”
He reached out and caught her wrist. “I’ve never been more serious about anything in my life,” he told her fiercely.
“I don’t know,” she said, moving to glance out the window at the sun setting. “You seemed quite serious about coming to New York to seduce me for petty revenge.”
Deshawn moved to stand behind her at the window, and was surprised when she didn’t move away. “When I saw you at the wedding you blew me away on the spot. You were—are—so damn beautiful, confident, and sexy. I’m no slouch with
the ladies—”
“Humph.”
“But you were doing something a woman hadn’t done in a long time and that’s turn me down. All my charm and flattering didn’t work on you. It was a blow to my ego. I wanted to prove I could have you.”
Anika flinched. And you did.
“But I fooled myself into thinking that was my only reason for going to New York. I couldn’t stop thinking about you. You intrigued me.” Deshawn placed his hands on Anika’s shoulders lightly and turned her to face him so that he could look down into her eyes. “That week in New York became about more than a conquest to me. I can’t remember the last time I sat up all night talking to a woman.”
“Spare me the details,” she drawled, moving away from him to sit on the chaise longue.
“I enjoyed your company. You made me laugh. You were so sweet to me. I couldn’t wait for you to get home from work and tell me about your day. Everything about you and the way I felt about you was new to me. Poochie—”
Anika held up a hand. “Please,” she stressed, cocking her head to the side with attitude.
“Poochie and I were based on sex. We never went on dates. We didn’t talk about anything important. We had nothing at all in common. And we were together for years.” Deshawn looked out at the lavender-and-orange-emblazoned sky as the sun lowered. “Maybe I never knew how to love a good woman because it’s been so long since I’ve dealt with one. I’ve never been in love—”
“So how can you say you are now?”
Deshawn moved to kneel before her. “You are it for me. Sexually, intellectually, spiritually.”
“Until you’re tired of me like, Poochie.”
Heavenly Match Page 19