Long, Slow Surrender

by Stephanie Morris

He bowed low from the waist and brought forth a bottle of wine from behind his back. “A fine wine for a refined woman.”

  From her bedroom, she heard a choked laugh and she was glad she’d left the television on.

  “Please, have a seat.”

  He sat down and then pulled out a corkscrew from his jacket before proceeding to uncork the wine. “I brought everything except the wine glasses.”

  She nearly broke the sound of speed as she made her way into the kitchen, finding two wine glasses. When she returned to the living room, he was sniffing the cork appreciatively.

  Seriously. Who does such a thing?

  With a loud clank, she placed the goblets on her coffee table, then seated herself on the chair farthest away from Theodore. The last thing she wanted to do was encourage him.

  He poured her a bit of wine, then poured some in his own glass. “I would like to make a toast.”

  She didn’t lift her wine glass, but she did place a coaster underneath it. “Hold on, Theodore. You might not be in a toasting mood after I say this.”

  He tilted his head to the side, his expression full of curiosity. “Feel free to speak your mind.”

  She rested her hands on her knees. “Theodore, I know you think the two of us make a perfect couple, but I don’t agree with your—”

  “Is this why you started seeing Connor, to make me jealous?”

  “No, Theodore. That’s not why.”

  “Michelle, you’ve always been there for me, ready to defend me when no one else would even think about it. I know you care for me. You always have.”

  “Yes I do, but only as a friend, Theodore. Are you truly willing to settle for that affection when you deserve so much more?”

  He reached for her hand. “Having you care for me, even if it is just friendship, makes me happier than being with another woman who sees me as nothing more than a bank account.”

  She stared into his warm eyes and wished she were the woman for him. He deserved someone good, nice, the perfect wife. Someone who could love every stuffy, pompous inch of him.

  “I wouldn’t be happy with friendship and, deep down, you know you wouldn’t either.”

  “I don’t know, Michelle. You’re an exceptional woman. I think we are well suited.”

  “You think you know who I am, but you would be unhappy with me.”

  “Why would you say that?”

  She took her hand out of his grip and reached for her wine glass. “I’m not the friendliest person in the world. I’ve also been accused of being unpleasant when I don’t get my way.”

  “That’s okay, dear. All women have their days.”

  Her hand tightened reflexively around the wine glass. His socializing skills were horrible. Lacking.

  “That’s a very sexiest statement.”

  “My apologies, of course.”

  It was a struggle not to roll her eyes. “Yes, well, this is just more reinforcement of the fact that we’re not meant for each other. Look, Theodore. I’m discovering a new me. I want to feel alive. I want to shiver with excitement when the man I am involved with touches me. I don’t feel that way with you.”

  “And you do with Connor?”

  She nodded. It was the truth.

  “Why?” he asked.

  She exhaled softly. “You’re not going to make this easy, are you?”

  “To be quite honest, I think you’re trying to break up with me, so I don’t have any intention of making things easy.”

  “I’m not trying to break up with you. That would imply that something existed between us that never did. It also never will. You’re a very nice man—”

  Theodore cut her off. “I think you need to take your time about this, Michelle. We are very compatible, you and me. Way more than you and Connor. You’re ambitious, sophisticated, and intelligent.”

  Michelle sat down her wine glass. “And you don’t thing Connor is?”

  “My brother is a rebel. He always did things his own way. He’s certainly not sophisticated, his intelligence, or lack thereof, is the reason he didn’t attend the same schools as you and I, and ambitious? What do you think, Michelle?”

  She frowned. “I don’t understand how you two can be brothers and be so completely opposite. You lack some of Connor’s better qualities, Theodore.”

  Theodore shrugged, just like Connor. “All these years, Michelle, why did you befriend me? I’d always assumed you cared for me. Was it just sympathy all this time?”

  He looked at her, completely clueless. Unfortunately, that was Theodore. “No. I did something the other kids didn’t do. I focused on your potential.”

  “Potential?” His laugh lacked humor. “I was an experiment for you then? A project? Help the nerd out of the shadows. You want to help the needy? Is Connor next on your list of good deeds?”

  She rose to her feet. “I will not allow you to do this, Theodore. You don’t get to twist my words around to soothe your ego. For the absolute last time, what we have between us is friendship, nothing more. It never will be. If you can’t accept that, then we can’t remain friends either.”

  A long silence followed her passionate statement, and for the first time, Theodore Sakuma looked defeated. “Well, when you put it like that…”

  She made a soothing sound. “Let me set you up with someone, Theodore. I have a few friends who would love to meet you.”

  His mouth twitched with amusement. “A date? You want to fix me up?”

  “Yes. A concept I know you aren’t familiar with and definitely underutilized by the male gender, but quite useful. Will you let me?”

  He fidgeted for several moments, straightening his tie, taking a drink of his wine. “What sort of woman do you have in mind for me?”

  “Someone that has graceful social etiquette, she could set the perfect table, would have a nice warm dinner waiting for you when you arrive home.”

  “It does sound very intriguing.” He frowned. “You would be okay with this? It is quite sudden.”

  She fought the urge to grit her teeth. Baby steps. One small step at a time. “I have Connor.” Again, the muffled sound came from the bedroom.

  Theodore turned his head. “Did you hear that noise?”

  “It is probably the television,” she responded quickly.

  “Michelle, Michelle, Michelle…” Theodore exhaled in a dramatic fashion. “He’s here, isn’t he? My blood, my brother, my rival.” Theodore stood up. “Connor! You cad, reveal yourself!”

  Connor appeared in the doorway to the bedroom, looking quite at home. Michelle was thrilled. “Does anyone say ‘cad’ besides you?”

  “There are other words I could use, but we are in the presence of a lady.”

  Connor emitted an elaborate sigh, sounding just like his younger brother. Michelle studied him carefully, trying to determine if he was mocking Theodore. But no, he didn’t even seem to notice he did it.

  She observed the undercurrents between the two men, not certain what to do. “Connor, would you like to join us for a glass of wine?”

  He grinned at her. A nice smile. A supportive one. She really liked it. “I will join you, but I’d rather have a beer.” He strolled into the kitchen, again, looking quite relaxed and at home. Theodore scowled.

  Did she even have beer in her refrigerator? Michelle thought about it for a moment, not certain that she did. But then Connor exited the kitchen with a beer bottle in his hand. Well, she must have bought some. Connor sat down on the arm of her chair. A casual possessiveness that caused a hot shiver to race up her back. Was he changing his opinion toward her?

  Connor pointed his bottle at Theodore. “Back off, little brother.”

  Well, she definitely hadn’t expected that, but his defense made her feel warm and fuzzy. Theodore’s well-arched eyebrows raised a fraction of an inch. “Is that a threat?”

  Connor spoke with what seemed to be a lifelong weariness. “Of course not, Theo. I’m simply trying to help you.”

  “What can you do to he
lp me?” Theodore asked with all the superiority of a younger brother who’d always managed to outshine the older one.

  Michelle rushed to Connor’s defense. “Theodore, be nice.”

  Connor gave her a nice hug for her effort. “You need to get out and live a little. Do things. Meet other women.”

  “Like you do, you mean.”

  “Yes.”

  Theodore’s chest puffed out. “I would never—”

  “Connor’s right,” Michelle interjected.

  Theodore looked at her as if she had suddenly lost her mind. “Do you really agree with him?”

  He looked so earnest that Michelle felt a pang of sympathy. “That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you for years.”

  Connor leaned forward, placing the cool bottle against Michelle’s neck, a gesture that Theodore noticed. She felt the cold perspiration trickle down her neck, and she crossed her legs tighter, squirming in her seat. Another gesture that Theodore noticed.

  He cleared his throat. “What should I do?”

  “I have a friend. I’ll fix the two of you up. A week from Saturday. That should be enough time. We can all do dinner.”

  Theodore pulled out his iPhone. “Can’t do that day. Have dinner with the parents Saturday evening.” Connor swore under his breath, which Michelle ignored, majorly curious at the thought of seeing Connor with his parents after all these years. How had he and Theodore turned out so completely opposite? From what she could remember of the Sakumas, they were just like Theodore. Connor had always been the black sheep.

  “Excellent! We’ll all go! Theodore, I’ll call Vivien.” She batted her eyelashes at him, a blatant misuse of her feminine wiles. Necessary when at battle with a man like Theodore. “It will be fun!”

  Theodore shared Connor’s look of discomfort, but at least he nodded. “Okay. I trust your opinion when it comes to all matters.” He glanced at Connor. “Almost all matters. So, I will leave myself in your very capable hands. Feel free to mold me anyway you like, as though I am—”

  “Goodnight, Theo,” Connor said, standing.

  “But I just arrived,” Theodore began.

  Connor wrapped an arm around Michelle. She leaned back into him, felt a warm kiss against her neck. Her blood heated instantly, and her eyes drifted shut. She dissolved into her own little pool of heaven and heard brisk footsteps on the cold tile floor followed by the sound of the door shutting decisively.

  Pure nirvana.

  For several minutes, Connor stood behind her. She felt his heartbeat against her back, felt the strong muscles in his chest, felt the all-too-real proof of his desire pressing against the curve of her bottom. This was the moment she had longed for.

  She turned in his arms, stared up into his eyes, and prayed for his kiss. The depths of his gaze heated, then burned. Burned for her.

  And then he blinked. He drew away from her; his look turned cool, distant.

  Crap. She rubbed her arms, feeling a chill in the room for the first time. She looked around the bland apartment, so empty, so lifeless.

  The she looked at Connor. Dark jeans, black boots, black hair. No color at all, yet the apartment seemed full of him, full of his light.

  He stepped further away. “I guess I should go now.”

  “You don’t have to—” Michelle began.

  “I owe you an apology,” he interrupted.

  “You do? For what?”

  He shrugged sheepishly. “You tried.”

  She couldn’t hide her triumphant grin. “You noticed that, huh?”

  “Considering my history with Theodore, I should have believed you in the first place.”

  “Yes, you should have.”

  “Next time I will.”

  “Good.” She pressed her luck. She wanted him to stay, forever. “Why don’t you stay for dinner?”

  He shook his head. “I don’t think that is a good idea.”

  “Why? Are you watching your weight?”

  He laughed, his eyes crinkling at the corners. “Do you think I should?”

  She studied his broad shoulders, emphasizing his hard yet smooth muscles. No one would blame her if she jumped him right now. She closed her eyes and exhaled. Sanity returned. “You don’t need any more compliments, mister. Your head is already big enough.”

  “But it would definitely mean more coming from you—” he bantered. Abruptly, he turned away. “I really should leave now.”

  “I’ve got salmon, asparagus, and rice pilaf. I can have a salad ready in less than five minutes.”

  That got his attention. He took one step closer. “I didn’t know you can cook.”

  “Not as well as you, of course. But I hold my own in the kitchen.” She picked up the wine glasses from the coffee table. Adjusted the magazines until the corners were perfectly even. “You should stay, Connor.” She met his gaze full on. Her desire was there, unhidden for him to see.

  This time, he didn’t blink. “Okay, I will.”

  * * * *

  Connor sat across from Michelle at the table, eating absolutely some of the best salmon he’d ever had. “You’re very good at this.”

  “Not better than you, of course.”

  He stopped, his fork halfway to his mouth. “Yes, but I have received formal training and there are still things that stump me.”

  “There are? Like what?”

  Dangerous territory. As far as he was concerned, Michelle knew about enough of his weaknesses. He stuffed his mouth full, murmuring sounds of assent, hoping she would forget her question.

  She laughed at him. There wasn’t anything mean or vindictive about her laughter, only something warm and nice.

  He wanted to cook for her in return. Damn, she was starting to get under his skin. Maybe Theodore had been onto something when he’d fallen for Michelle. Nah. He shook his head, refusing to admit Theodore was right about anything.

  “What’s your favorite thing to eat?” she asked.

  He swallowed another mouthful of the delicious food. She had done a marvelous job with this fish. “A nice steak. Perfect Gorgonzola encrusted.”

  Her smile made his heart skip several beats. It could only be described as mysterious and amused. “You and your brother share similar taste in food.”

  “It’s a Sakuma thing.” He shrugged it off, not want to think about similarities between him and Theodore. As far as Connor was concerned, there weren’t any. “What do you like?”

  “I’m a big fan of breakfast. My absolute favorite being quiche. Don’t care what kind it is as long as it is quiche.” She closed her eyes and inhaled. “A hot, fresh cup of brewed coffee with the right amount of cream and sugar.”

  Quiche? His kryptonite. The one food item he always struggled to prepare and had yet to succeed. But he could learn to make it correctly for Michelle, couldn’t he? He took in her exquisite look of pleasure and knew that he’d move heaven and earth in order to be the cause of that hedonistic expression.

  For a moment, the thought shocked him. Michelle and hedonistic didn’t belong in the same sentence. Yet, there she sat, looking like some Nubian goddess. His body responded instantly. He adjusted the napkin on his lap. Just in case.

  “You want to be an executive chef?” A medium length piece of asparagus dangled from the end of her fork and she took it in her mouth, sucking it in like a kid. A dangerous combination of innocent and sexy cunning. Her eyes were wide and guileless, but her words were what mattered.

  Forget hedonistic, she was just trying to turn him into something he wasn’t. Intelligent, ambitious, sophisticated. He heard what Theodore had said, and Connor wasn’t playing that game.

  “Yes.” He studied his bottle of beer. “This beer is pretty good. I’ve never had it before.”

  “I’m glad you like it.” She dabbed at the corners of her mouth with her napkin. “Now, why do you want to be an executive chef?”

  It appeared that she wasn’t going to let him distract her from her line of questioning. He gazed at the brilliant s
cenery outside the window in her loft. All those lights. All those dreams.

  What about his dreams? He turned back to Michelle, and instantly dreams and reality became muddled.

  “It’s the ultimate pinnacle in the restaurant world, next to owning the restaurant, of course. But that’s not the path I want to go down. Besides, I am good at what I do and I want to be the best at it. Becoming an executive chef would definitely be my best.” He chuckled, embarrassed.

  Michelle didn’t share his humor; she looked serious. “You should do it, then.”

  Ambition. Uncomfortable with that thought, he shrugged. “Yes, well, then there’s reality, Michelle. Sometimes the price is too high. Not all of us were meant to be ridiculously successful.”

  “No one is meant to do anything. Your life is your own for the taking. No one makes it or breaks it for you.”

  “How optimistic of you.”

  An awkward silence occupied the space. He’d pissed her off. And maybe part of him had done it on purpose. A ticked off Michelle he could deal with.

  He studied her carefully as she put her napkin down on the table, and then walked across the room. When she stopped in front of the stereo, she bent slightly and adjusted the volume.

  Every time she moved, he knew. Every time she breathed, he noticed. He wanted to look away, but he couldn’t.

  “I think Luis is going to have a solid case.”

  Connor shook his head. “Excuse me?”

  “I looked through several archives. The company who manufactured the product that Luis used settled a case out of court. I recommended a lawyer to him a few days ago. Luis liked the attorney so I provided the information that I collected. From what I understand, Luis and his counsel filed suit against the company today.”

  And Connor had thought Theodore was amazing. “You’ve done all of that in a week?”

  She flipped through the stack of CDs next to the stereo. “No, it’s been longer than a week. But I put a lot of work into this when I could because my gut told me there was something wrong. It seems I was correct.”

  Just looking at all the energy inside her made him tired. “How many hours did you put into this?”

  “Doesn’t matter. Would you like dessert?”