Roses & Champagne Kisses

by Stacy Eaton

  I shrugged and went back to my search for caffeine. “No clue, I just came down.”

  He was quiet while I made the coffee, and I saw from the corner of my eye that he was now standing near the back wall taking in the view. Was he looking at something or contemplating something?

  “Are you hungry? I was going to make eggs,” I asked casually.

  “Absolutely, we Waterman boys are always hungry.” He came around to the fridge and began to dig through it. “Here, I knew he would have bacon in there, too.”

  I laughed, “Bacon and eggs it is then.”

  “Skillet is in the cabinet to the right of the stove.”

  “You know your way around your brother’s kitchen pretty well.”

  “When Sherry—” he paused awkwardly.

  “I know about his wife passing. You were saying?”

  “Oh, okay. When she died, I spent a lot of time here helping him and Wade. Do you know Wade?”

  “Yes, I do.”

  “He’s a good kid. Anyway, when I was here, I got to know my way around the entire house. Hence the reason I have a key and headed into the bedroom last night when I got here.”

  “Ah,” I replied, not wanting to discuss last night with him. “Are you excited about your wedding?”

  He laughed in recognition of the fact that I had done an about-face on the conversation. “Yes.”

  He didn’t sound very excited about it and when I took another look at him, he was frowning.

  “What do you do? Your brother tells me you travel a lot, but he never mentioned what it was that you did.”

  “I’m a financial consultant.”

  I began to lay out the slices of bacon in the frying pan, wishing I had my favorite stone to cook it in instead. There was nothing like cooking bacon on a stone in the microwave to get it crispy fast. “Do you help people make investments, or just make good plans with their money?”

  “I specialize in working with larger corporations that want to diversify.”

  I nodded. “Do you enjoy it?”

  “Yeah, I do. I’ve worked with numbers my whole life. I love dealing with money and figuring out statistics that will assist companies in becoming profitable or getting out of trouble.”

  The sizzling of the bacon eased the last of my tension, along with the fact that he wasn’t talking down to me. I’d had many people do that when I attempted to speak business with them, and they immediately assumed that because of my current line of business, I didn’t know what I was talking about.

  The conversation was easy between Rye and me, and for the next few minutes we talked about his business, and I listened and asked questions as I genuinely was interested. The more specific the question, the more in detail he went. Being a business major, I understood this stuff and missed being involved with it.

  When Roan joined us, I was surprised when he kissed my cheek in greeting. It was a sweet, simple, and caring gesture that touched my heart. The three of us enjoyed breakfast. When I got up to do the dishes, he pulled me onto his lap. If his brother hadn’t been there, I might have shifted around so I was straddling him and kissed the hell out of him—maybe.

  All night long I’d dreamed of him. In one of my dreams, I’d been getting out of the tub, and the door had opened, but it hadn’t been Rye, it had been Roan. I’d probably imagined Roan and me making love six different ways, and I was all too willing to start trying them out.

  I was dressed and downstairs staring out the glass at the beautiful view when Roan came in. I glanced at him from head to toe and then returned my gaze to the scenery. He came up behind me and put his hands on my shoulders. Only it’s wasn’t Roan, it was Rye.

  I gave him an annoyed look over my shoulder. “You aren’t fooling me. You smell different than your brother.”

  He barked out a laugh. “I smell different, now that’s new. I’m not sure I’ve ever heard that one.”

  “Heard what?” Roan said as he entered.

  I turned to him and examined him from head to toe. Yeah, they did look a lot alike, but I could tell the differences easily. Rye had fooled me for a moment because he’d shaved, but he did smell different than his brother.

  “Your brother wanted to see if he could fool me, but I knew it was him. He smells different than you.”

  Roan laughed and smirked at his brother. “He smells like sweaty socks, right?”

  “Douche,” Rye called out playfully.

  “No, since I work in a kitchen and enjoy cooking, I tend to pick up subtle clues in scents. Helps with preparing foods. Rye is a little muskier than you are. You have more of a clean, citrus scent.”

  Roan grinned at his brother and pointed at me, “See, she said you smell like sweaty socks.”

  We all laughed and then Rye asked us, “What are you two doing today?”

  Roan answered, “We are going to head over to her place and meet the police, then she has some work she needs to do with Robin. I’m bringing my laptop to work as we go.”

  “I actually have an appointment with Autumn later today. Robin reminded me of that this morning. Are you going to be there with her?” I directed the question to Rye.

  He winced and rubbed his chin. “I don’t know. Maybe.”

  Roan slapped his brother on his back. “You need to go.”

  “Why? I thought all the catering was decided.”

  Roan laughed heartily while I snickered and responded, “She still has a few things she needs to decide. It might make it easier if you help her.”

  “Damn weddings,” he grumbled. “Fine, then I guess I will see you guys later.”

  Rye took off while Roan gathered his laptop and a few papers and put them into a backpack.

  “Why a backpack? Why not a briefcase?”

  “Because I like my hands available. If I need to do something, or run after someone, it’s easier if it’s over my shoulders and I’m not holding stuff in my hands.”

  “Wow, I never thought about that.”

  He zipped up the bag and began to toss it over his shoulder, but then set it back on the table and approached me. “Sorry for my brother being here and screwing with you.”

  “It’s alright. I like him. He’s nice, although he can’t fool me, and he finds that funny.”

  “I like that you can tell the difference.” He put his hands on my hips, and my hands landed on his biceps.

  “It’s not that hard.”

  “Autumn sometimes can’t tell the difference. She has literally taken pictures of him before parties which we both attended so she has a reminder of what he’s wearing.”

  I laughed, “You’re kidding.”

  “No. I’m not.”

  “I figured it out the minute he walked into the bathroom.”

  He frowned. “You know, I really hate that he’s seen you naked.”

  My hands slipped to his shoulders, and I wound my arms around his neck. “Yes, but you did get a peek and you got to touch, he didn’t. We could rectify that now, you know.”

  He twisted and looked into the kitchen toward the stove, probably checking the little digital clock there. “Not enough time. When I finally get the time, I want hours with you.”

  “Hours? You think you have the stamina for that?”

  He frowned, “Are you calling me old? I’m not even forty yet,” a seductive grin split his lips, “and trust me, I have plenty of stamina. I’ve been saving it for years.”

  I began to laugh again, and Roan pulled me closer, not to kiss me, but to hold me tightly to him. I loved that, and I sighed into his chest. As he pulled away, he kissed my forehead.

  “Let’s get going, and we can revisit this later tonight.”

  “Sounds like a plan.” I bounced up on my toes and planted a quick kiss on his lips. As I began to turn, he yanked me closer and took me in a molten embrace. “Are you sure we don’t have time?” I asked as we split apart.

  “Sorry, couldn’t help myself. Let’s get out of here.” He grabbed his backpack with one hand an
d my hand with the other.

  * * *

  Two hours later, the police were about finished. When they had first arrived, I had been very defensive, but Roan had encouraged me to relax and answer the questions. Once I was done answering them, we walked around the little house and made a list of the damaged property while we looked for possible missing items.

  I was wearing gloves, and occasionally, when it was obvious that Howie had rifled through something, they would have the crime scene guys come over and dust it for prints. They had found several and collected the items to take back as evidence. By the time we’d gone through my entire place, the only thing I had found missing were my favorite earrings, fifty dollars that I kept for emergencies in my sock drawer, and the key.

  While we had been going around the house, Roan had been seated at the small kitchen table working on his laptop. At first, I wasn’t sure how he could connect to the internet since I didn’t have access, but he pointed to his phone which was plugged into an electrical socket and told me his phone was a hotspot.

  I imagined it was nice to have a phone that could turn into a Wi-Fi signal anytime you needed it. I’d be happy just to have a signal most of the time.

  I thanked the police just as Roan’s phone rang. “Detective Hawkswell, thank you for calling me back,” he answered.

  He listened for a moment. “Actually the state police just left here. They found a few prints that they are going to compare. Do you have his prints on file? That might help them.”

  He was quiet again, and he winked at me as he spoke again, “Trooper Mitz was the one that was just here.”

  He spoke to him for just another moment before he hung up and stood. “So the detective over in Middletown is going to see what he can dig up on Wallace, and he’s going to touch base with the trooper who was just here, see if he can assist with that investigation.”

  I was a little shocked. “Thank you, Roan. I never expected this much help.”

  He caressed the side of my cheek with a knuckle. “You deserve it, Finley. Now, how about we go grab lunch and then head over to see Robin.”

  “Perfect, I’m starving.”

  “Do you want to go to the café?”

  “No, if I do, I’ll end up working. Let’s go to the tavern.” He winced, and I took his hand. “You did fine the last time you were there. We can always make fun of all the pictures.”

  “Fine, for you, I’ll do it.”

  Chapter 20

  Roan

  The last thing I wanted to do was go to the tavern, but if that’s where Finley wanted to eat, then so be it. It had been a rough morning for her, and I was willing to do anything I could to ease her tension—even go back to my old stomping grounds.

  When we arrived, Finley surprised me when the hostess went to seat us in the back corner. “Do you mind putting us on the other side?”

  I touched her arm. “Actually, it’s okay. I want to sit back here.”

  “Are you sure?” she asked, and the hostess glanced at me and then the wall before her mouth fell open.

  “Oh, my god! That’s you!” She began to wave her face with the menus as if she needed help getting air into her gaping mouth.

  I ignored the waitress. “Positive, in fact, this table right here would be perfect. Do you mind if we take this one?”

  It was the same table at which Finley had been seated when I’d found her earlier this week. The waitress nodded like a bobblehead and set the menus in front of us after we’d taken our seats.

  “Thank you,” I told her and hoped that she’d take the hint and walk away, but she continued to stare.

  Before I could say anything to her, Finley stepped in. “Honey,” she snapped her fingers and the hostess flipped her face toward Finley while I tried not to laugh, “can you please tell our waitress that my boyfriend and I are ready to order?”

  The hostess studied Finley for a second as if she had never seen her before her face snapped back to me, and she began to blush from the roots of her hair down. “I’m staring. I’m so sorry. It’s just that I heard you lived around here, but I never expected you to come in.”

  I gave her the barest of nods before I grinned at Finley. The minute the hostess walked away, I leaned over the table and she held her hand up.

  “Don’t you dare say a word. I said that to get her attention and for no other reason. I am well aware that we are not even dating.”

  “I was going to say, ‘That was quick thinking.’”

  “Yeah, right.” She put the menu in front of her face, and I wasn’t positive, but I thought she might have been blushing slightly, too. I chuckled and studied the menu in front of me.

  The waitress joined us a few moments later, and I greeted her with a smile and immediately noticed that she wore a fresh application of lip gloss. Playing on Finley’s ruse, I said, “Sweetheart, you’re ready to order, correct?”

  Finley let the menu drop slowly as she batted her eyes my way shyly, and I almost barked out a laugh. She covered my hand with hers, lovingly caressing it, “Too bad they don’t have you on the menu, sweet cheeks, because I’d love to eat you right up.”

  From the corner of my eye I saw the waitress’s eyes grow as large as saucers. “Later, sweetheart, you can enjoy your dessert a little later.”

  She licked her lips and then sat up straight, turning her attention to the young lady beside our table. “I’d like the bleu cheeseburger with tomato, mayo, and lettuce. Please make sure there is no onion on that, and I’d like the waffle fries, not the straight ones, with cheese on the side, please.”

  “I’ll have the same burger, but I want straight fries, and we’ll both take a Sam Adams Lager.”

  “Absolutely, sir.” Unlike the hostess, she understood immediately that she had been dismissed. She took our menus and was gone without another word.

  “I think we might have shocked her a little bit.” Finley grinned like the cat that got the cream.

  “What would really shock her is if you came over here and sat on my lap so I could kiss you. I’d come to you, but I’m not sure I could stand up without someone noticing how turned on I am right now.”

  Her brows jumped. “Flirting in front of other people turns you on?”

  “No, flirting with you turns me on—doesn’t matter if other people are around or not.”

  She laughed and looked around, “Why did you want to sit here? I would have been just as happy sitting on the other side of the room.”

  I shrugged, “I guess I’m ready to face the memories. It’s time to do that, or maybe I feel strong enough to do it since you’re here with me.”

  Her brow creased just the slightest bit as if I’d said something confusing or hard to believe. I decided to let it go and changed the subject, “So which picture do you like the best?”

  “Oh.” She rubbed her hands together as she began to look around at the pics. “Wait, if I tell you, you aren’t going to let it go to your head, are you?”

  I laughed just as the waitress arrived with our drinks. I thanked her and then answered Finley, “No, I swear, I’m not on an ego trip here, I’m just curious which ones you like.”

  She eyed me suspiciously for a moment. “Okay, you better not. Where did you take that one?” She pointed at the one of me getting out of the pool.

  “Milan.”

  Her eyes popped. “Milan, as in Italy?”

  “Yep, that shoot was at a private hotel suite, and as you can see, it was for a cologne.”

  “Did you wear the cologne?”

  “Oh, god, no. It was horrible. Way too strong for me.”

  For the next forty-five minutes while we ate and fended off flirting wait staff, I told her about each picture. She asked tons of questions, but one of the best questions she asked each time was: What were you thinking when they snapped that shot? The first time she asked, I’d found myself drifting back to that exact moment and trying to remember what might have been on my mind. Most of the time, it had been Sherry, and thinking
of her had helped me to achieve the seductive or loving look that the photographer was going for.

  We were heading back to the car when Finley turned to me. “You really loved her a lot.”

  “I did.”

  She exhaled slowly. “Someday I want someone to love me like that.”

  “I hope you find that, too.” I didn’t speak the other words that were floating around inside my mind. Would I be the one to love her that way? Would whatever this is become something more, or were we just going to be together for a little while and then move on?

  “When you talk about Sherry, you get this incredible light in your eyes, and I can hear how much she meant to you in the words you use. I dream of finding a man who might have that same light in his eye when he thinks of me.”

  I couldn’t resist, I cupped the side of her face, and leaned down to kiss her. The kiss was tender and slow, and when we parted, we stared at one another. I saw her wishes shining back at me, but I didn’t say anything. Instead, I laced her fingers with mine and returned to my car.

  “What time do we have to meet with Autumn and my brother?”

  “I’m supposed to meet them at one. What time is it?”

  “Oops, It’s almost one now. Let me call Rye and tell him we are going to be late.” I pulled out on the road and asked my car to put the call through.

  Rye answered a moment later, “What’s up?”

  “Hey, Finley and I are running a few minutes late. We will meet you guys at the café in about fifteen minutes.”

  “Crap, I forgot about that meeting. Look, I’ll call her and let her know, but you guys are going to have to do this without me.”

  “Rye, what’s going on?”

  “I have work to do. Autumn can handle this stuff.”

  “Seriously? You make me go to those stupid appointments and you can’t be bothered to go? It’s your wedding, Rye.”

  “Yeah, well, you’re already going to be there, why don’t you just help her make the decisions?”

  I twisted my hands around the steering wheel as if I were strangling him. “Get your ass to the café, now. Unless you plan on calling the wedding off, you need to get over there and make some decisions.”