by Lynn LaFleur
“I wondered about that too.” Molly wrapped both hands around her ceramic mug. “What’s up?”
Twyla knew she couldn’t fool her two friends. She slowly pried the lid off her cup while trying to figure out a way to tell them about Daniel. The best way would be to simply say it.
“I met someone Saturday night, a man I wanted to be with for more than a few minutes. We had dinner together and he spent the night with me.”
Molly tilted her head. “You don’t look happy. Wasn’t he any good in bed?”
“He was amazing in bed.”
“Then what’s wrong?”
“I was nothing more than a one-night stand to him.”
“How do you know that?” Marci asked.
“Because he blew me off Sunday. He didn’t ask to see me again. He didn’t even ask for my phone number to make me think he might call me. Nothing.”
“Maybe you should call him.”
“How? I don’t have his phone number. I don’t even know his last name. All I know is he lives in Seattle. That doesn’t exactly narrow down the search options.” She tore her muffin in half and dropped both halves on the paper saucer without taking a bite. “We clicked so well. I felt a…connection between us. Or I thought I did. I would never have believed he was just after sex. I’ve dated enough of that kind of man to spot one easily.”
“Sometimes they fool us.”
“Daniel certainly fooled me. I feel like an idiot.”
Marci covered Twyla’s hand with hers. “Don’t. You aren’t an idiot. He’s the idiot for not realizing what a special woman you are.”
Twyla knew Marci would say exactly the right thing. She always did. “Thanks, but it taught me a lesson. Obviously I’m not ready to date yet. I made a total mess of it.”
Sympathy filled Marci’s eyes. “Twyla—“
“No, it’s a good thing. I can tell my friends—especially Sherry—to stop setting me up with men.”
“You can’t give up,” Molly said. “Look at how happy Marci is with Keefe.”
“I know, and I think that’s wonderful. I hope to meet a man as wonderful as Keefe someday. I thought I had, but he turned out to be a very handsome, sexy jerk. I’m glad I’ll never see him again.”
Molly wiggled her mouth back and forth. “You know what you need? You need to go shopping.”
“I’m not in a shopping mood, Molly.”
“A woman is always in a shopping mood. Come by Nordstrom later. I’ll give you a sneak peek at some of the new holiday items we got in yesterday.”
“Can I get in on this too?” Marci asked.
“Absolutely. We’ll drool over the expensive party dresses and have a long lunch. How about it?”
Twyla didn’t have a man in her life, but she had wonderful friends. She smiled. “Deal.”
*
“Hi!” Sherry grabbed Twyla’s arm and pulled her into a hug. “I’m so glad you came over.”
“You didn’t exactly give me the chance to say no.”
Sherry grinned. “I do have a talent, don’t I?” She moved back so Twyla could walk into the kitchen. “I know you rarely cook and a home-cooked meal will be good for you. We’ll stuff ourselves with lasagna and garlic bread and drink lots of wine and talk until midnight.”
“Sounds good.”
“Sit down and I’ll get us a glass of wine. I sent George to the store for the bread. We have about fifteen minutes to ourselves before he gets back.”
“Where are the kids?”
“At my mom’s. She lives in the middle of that huge housing development. They’ll have a better shot at getting lots of Halloween candy at her house.”
Twyla wandered into the living room. She’d called Sherry Tuesday evening and told her everything that had happened with Daniel. Her friend had been ready to skin him alive. While she’d listened to Sherry rant about men without morals, Twyla realized she couldn’t blame Daniel for what had happened between them. She’d invited him to her room. She’d willingly gone to bed with him and enjoyed every moment. So she’d been a one-night stand to him. That wasn’t a crime. He was out of her life and she’d never see him again.
“Here you go.” Sherry held out a glass of red wine to Twyla.
“Thanks.” She took a long sip while her friend sat on the opposite end of the couch. “Mmm, good.”
“I splurged and bought the good stuff.”
“I’m flattered.”
Sherry sipped her wine. “So, do we start bashing the asshole now or after dinner?”
“I’m tired of bashing him. I enjoyed my time with him, Sher. He made me feel things I haven’t felt in a long time. The sex was incredible. That’s what I’ll remember.”
“But you wanted more than just sex.”
“Yes I did, but it wasn’t meant to be. It hurts, I’ll admit that. I survived Scott leaving me and I’ll survive this too.”
The sound of the kitchen door opening signaled George’s return from the grocery store. “Sherry?” he called out.
“In here,” Sherry said. She looked back at Twyla. “We’ll talk more after dinner.”
“You’ll never believe who I ran into at the store,” George said. “I convinced him to come over for dinner.”
“Who?”
George stepped into the living room. “Daniel.”
Twyla froze with the wineglass halfway to her mouth. No, it couldn’t be. George’s friend couldn’t be the same man who had shattered her heart six days ago. That would be a cruel coincidence. She looked past George to see the man who stepped into the living room behind Sherry’s husband.
Daniel stood there, looking even more handsome than he had a week ago. Desire tightened her stomach for a moment before she firmly pushed it aside. He’d probably love knowing he could still make her melt at his feet with a look from those sexy green eyes.
Sherry must not have sensed the tension between Twyla and Daniel for she stood with a smile. “How nice. I’ve been wanting you two to meet. You’d already have met if you hadn’t canceled dinner last week.” Her smile faded when she looked at Twyla again. “What’s wrong?” Her gaze passed from Twyla to Daniel and back again. Comprehension apparently dawned for her eyes widened. “You mean he… George’s coworker is the Daniel you met?”
Twyla nodded. Setting down her wineglass, she stood on shaky legs. “I’m sorry, Sher, but you must understand why I can’t stay for dinner.” She gave her friend a quick hug. “I’ll talk to you later.”
“Twyla, wait.”
She ignored Daniel’s plea and hurried toward the kitchen and escape. Grabbing her jacket and purse from the coat tree by the back door, she ran outside and toward her car. She heard the door slam behind her and picked up the pace. She couldn’t face him. If she did, she’d fall apart.
“Wait, please.”
He grabbed her upper arm, pulling her to a stop. Twyla tried to jerk her arm away from him, but he held her tightly. “Let go of me.”
“We need to talk, Twyla.”
She lashed out at him to cover her pain. “I have nothing to say to you and I don’t give a shit about anything you might say to me.”
Taking her other arm, he turned her to face him. “Twyla, I ran into George at the grocery store. He told me he and Sherry were having Sherry’s best friend over for dinner, that she’d been hurt by a man she met last weekend. He invited me to join everyone for dinner. My first instinct was to say no to his invitation. I didn’t want to spend the evening trying to be polite to a woman I didn’t know, one who probably hated every man on the planet right now. Then he said the friend’s name was Twyla. There couldn’t be that many Twylas in the Seattle area, or even in Washington, so I knew the friend must be you. I had no idea you were the woman I was supposed to meet here last week.”
“It doesn’t matter. We met at Wild Rose Inn and fucked each other’s brains out. End of story.”
The mercury light over the garage offered enough illumination to let Twyla see anger flash through Daniel’
s eyes. “It wasn’t like that and you know it.”
“Do I? Then what am I supposed to call it?” She pushed against his chest, but his hold was too strong to break. A lump formed in her throat. She was afraid she’d cry any moment, and she certainly didn’t want to do that in front of Daniel. “You dropped me off after our day together without even asking me for my phone number or last name. You had no intention of ever seeing me again.”
“You’re right. I didn’t. But it wasn’t because I didn’t want to. I was trying to be considerate.”
“Considerate? Well, that’s a new word for brush-off.”
His eyebrows drew together and he scowled. “Damn it, Twyla, it wasn’t like that. I loved our time together. You have to know that.”
“I know you got your rocks off and went on your merry way to your next conquest.”
Daniel glanced up at the sky. “Talk about a stubborn woman,” he muttered. Looking back at her, he tugged her a step closer to him. “You said in my car you’d remember our time together for a long time. That sounded like a goodbye to me, like you didn’t want to see me again.”
She couldn’t believe he was trying to dump this back on her. “So it’s my fault you misunderstood what I said?”
“No. I’m not blaming you for anything. But you told me you weren’t ready to get involved with another man. I didn’t misunderstand that, did I? Isn’t that what you told me?”
He had her there. She’d said exactly that to him. “Yes,” she mumbled, hating to admit he was right.
“You’ve only been divorced four months. No matter how much I wanted to see you again, I let you go so you could heal.”
Twyla stopped struggling to get free when his words finally sank into her brain. “What?”
“You have no idea how hard it was to say goodbye to you. I wanted to beg you to give me the chance to prove I was nothing like your ex, that I would never hurt you the way he had.”
She lifted one hand to his face and touched his cheek. “You really wanted to see me again?”
He nodded. “More than anything. I’ve never fallen so quickly for a woman in my life. I can’t call it love yet, but it’s well on its way to that. If you’ll give me another chance.”
Tears flooded her eyes and filled her throat, making speech difficult. Instead of telling him how she felt, she showed him with her kiss.
Daniel wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against his body. Twyla ran her fingers into his hair and kissed him deeper. Lips slid across lips, tongues touched, warm breaths mingled in the cool air. She felt Daniel’s hands glide down to her bottom. He held her in place and rubbed his growing erection against her mound.
“Hey, you two,” Sherry called out from the back door. “You gonna stand out there in the rain or come in and eat?”
“Is it raining?” Daniel mumbled against her lips.
“Don’t care,” Twyla said before kissing him again.
“I know we live in a secluded area,” Sherry said, laughter in her voice, “but I do have neighbors.”
Reluctantly Twyla pulled back from Daniel. He smiled at her. “We don’t want the neighbors calling the police.”
“No. Plus I’m starving.”
“Me too. George said Sherry’s an awesome cook.”
“She is.” She slipped her hand into Daniel’s. “I’m definitely ready for her lasagna.”
Twyla led him back into the kitchen. She almost rolled her eyes at Sherry’s smug smile.
“See?” Sherry whispered while Daniel slipped off his jacket. “I told you I’d get you a date with the right man.”
Twyla looked at him as he pushed his damp hair back from his face. He winked at her. “Yes,” she said, smiling at Daniel. “You definitely got me a date with Mr. Wonderful.”
Epilogue
Llyr leaned against the wall, crossed his arms over his chest and watched Ashlyn straighten a pile of blue panties. She had divided Lavender Lace into sections by color to make it easier for her customers to find the exact lingerie they wanted. Everything she did for her customers was to help them find the perfect item to wear for the special man in their lives, or simply to feel better about themselves.
Llyr still thought bare was better.
“You’re staring at me,” Ashlyn said, her attention focused on the bits of silk and lace she folded.
“Aye, that I am. ‘Tis very enjoyable to stare at ye.”
She looked at him. “You could help me.”
Her expression was stern, but he could see the laughter in her eyes. “Ye know I donna do things the human way. I could straighten everythin’ with one snap of me fingers. So could ye.”
“I enjoy taking care of my store the human way, Llyr.”
“Aye, I know that. And I enjoy watchin’ ye do it.”
She released a dramatic sigh. “Sometimes I wonder why I’ve put up with you for five hundred years.”
Llyr pushed away from the wall. He liked the way her gaze devoured his body as he slowly walked to her. He tipped up her chin with one finger. “Because I make yer body sing when I make love to ye.”
Her eyes turned all liquid and soft, exactly the way he liked them. “Yes, you do.”
“And because I love ye,” he whispered before his lips touched hers.
So soft, so silky. Her beautiful lips parted as soon as he kissed her. Ashlyn always responded to his kisses and caresses with a passion that hadn’t dulled in five centuries.
She slid her arms around his neck and pressed her breasts against his chest, her mound against his hardening cock. He could easily take her right here, right now. A simple flick of his wrist would keep anyone outside from seeing through the large windows into the store. They’d made love several times in the back, but never out here among her frilly things.
“Llyr.”
“Hmm?” He pulled the collar of her shirt aside and kissed the spot where her neck met her shoulder. Her shiver made him smile.
“You do realize people can see us.”
Tugging up the back of her shirt, he laid his palm against the warm, smooth skin of her lower back. “Aye.”
“I don’t think it would be good for business for me to be arrested for indecent exposure.”
He kissed his way up her neck to her ear. “Then maybe we should go somewhere private. I promise ye, I’m about four seconds from gettin’ rid of yer clothes.”
She lifted one hand and snapped her fingers. All her displays were now straightened and ready for when she opened the store Tuesday morning.
Llyr smiled. “That’s me lass.”
Ashlyn returned his smile. “Take me home, Llyr.”
The End
About the Author
Lynn LaFleur was born and raised in a small town in Texas close to the Dallas/Fort Worth area. Writing has been in her blood since she was eight years old and wrote her first “story” for an English assignment.
As well as writing at every possible moment, Lynn enjoys reading, scrapbooking, photography and learning new things on the computer. She’s a software junky and loves to try out new programs, especially anything to do with graphics.
After living on the West Coast for 21 years, Lynn now lives 17 miles from her hometown in Texas. She’s a romantic at heart and can’t imagine ever writing anything but romances. A full-time writer, she spends her days creating stories of people who find their happily ever after, sometimes with the help of an alien or psychic or vampire.
Lynn welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email addresses on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.
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Also by Lynn LaFleur
A Cupid’s Work is Never Done
A Wish Granted
Business and Pleasure
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Coopers’ Companions 1: Rent-A-Stud
Coopers’ Companions 2: Michelle’s Men
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br /> Coopers’ Companions 3: Almost Perfection
Door Prize
Ellora’s Cavemen: Legendary Tails I anthology
Ellora’s Cavemen: Seasons of Seduction IV anthology
Enchanted Rogues anthology
Happy Birthday, Baby
One Night of Pleasure
Premonition
Turning Point with Randi Monroe
Two Men and a Lady anthology
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www.ellorascave.com
Two Lovers for Molly
Lynn LaFleur
Third in the Lavender Lace series.
A chance meeting with Julian Forrest changes author Molly Ross’ mind about her bad luck with men. Julian is not only gorgeous, but intelligent and charming.
Julian loves Molly’s sexy underwear. It makes his mouth water every time they make love. In less than a week, he knows he’s falling in love with her. Then Lane Edison comes back into Julian’s life. Despite being apart for a year, one kiss from the handsome man and Julian tumbles. He wants both Molly and Lane, but doesn’t know how that can happen…until he reads a threesome scene in the book Molly is writing.
Molly loves Julian, yet feels an instant attraction when she meets Lane. Discovering the two men were once lovers is a huge turn-on. When Julian suggests a ménage à trois, she’s more than willing to let the two men fulfill her fantasy.
An Ellora’s Cave Romantica Publication
www.ellorascave.com
Two Lovers for Molly
ISBN 9781419927188
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Two Lovers for Molly Copyright © 2010 Lynn LaFleur
Edited by Raelene Gorlinsky
Cover art by Syneca
Electronic book publication July 2010
The terms Romantica® and Quickies® are registered trademarks of Ellora’s Cave Publishing.
With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means existing without written permission from the publisher, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.® 1056 Home Avenue, Akron OH 44310-3502.