Breathless

by Cheryl Douglas

  “Would you relax?” Keith grinned at a petite blonde with a pixie haircut. “It won’t kill you to have a little fun.”

  “The only woman I’m interested in having fun with is my fiancée, dumbass.”

  “I know you’d never mess around on Ava. I’m not suggesting that, but she’d want you to have fun. In fact, she made me promise you’d have a good time. You don’t want to disappoint her, do you?”

  “I wonder what she’s up to tonight.”

  Tara had planned Ava’s bachelorette party at a friend’s house. “I’m sure she’s having a better time than you are.”

  “She’d better not be,” Brent said, scowling at the woman brushing up against him. “You don’t think Tara hired guys for her party, do you?”

  Keith laughed. “If I know Tara as well as I think I do, I’m guessing yes.” His amusement died when he imagined some bronzed, shredded dude flirting with Tara. Keith didn’t think she’d mess around with a stranger, but alcohol had a way of lowering people’s inhibitions.

  Surprisingly, Keith hadn’t even been tempted to renege on their agreement. He hadn’t met a single woman in the past few weeks who appealed to him as much as Tara. The irony of that was not lost on him. He’d tossed and turned every night, tempted to wander into her room to ask whether she ever lost sleep thinking about him.

  “That’s what worries me.”

  “You have nothing to worry about, man.” Keith gripped his glass. “Ava loves you. She’d never cheat on you.” Unlike Tara, who wasn’t even his girlfriend. She didn’t owe him anything, and she was free to do whatever she wanted with whomever she wanted. Keith hated that. He had no right to feel territorial, but he did.

  Brent shot him a sidelong glance. “What’s going on with you? You haven’t been yourself lately.”

  “I’m fine.”

  “No, you’re not. I know when you’re lying.” Brent set his empty glass on a passing waiter’s tray and declined his offer of another drink. “Does this have something to do with Tara?”

  “What would make you think that?” Keith was so preoccupied he barely noticed an unfamiliar face glaring at him.

  “Because I know you.” Wrapping an arm around his brother’s neck, Brent said, “You read like a book, man.”

  “Hey, do you know that guy over there?” Keith inclined his head toward the man in question. He hadn’t taken his eyes off Keith and Brent since Keith spotted him.

  “No,” Brent said. “Do you?”

  “Never seen him before.” Keith had reviewed the guest list with his assistant, and the guy clearly wasn’t an employee of J.T.’s. Keith sensed he could mean trouble. “Excuse me a minute,” Keith said. “I’ll be back.”

  The man in question bared his teeth as Keith moved in on him. “Well, well, we meet at last.” He raised his glass. “I’d like to say it’s a pleasure to meet you, but I’d be lying.”

  Keith inclined his head toward a quiet corner where they could talk in private. “Who the hell are you? This is a private party. Only people on the guest list were—”

  “Biagio Colletti.” A satisfied smile spread across his face when recognition dawned in Keith’s eyes. “Good, I see Tara has told you about me.”

  “What the hell are you doing here?”

  “I came to give you a message.” Biagio brought his glass to his mouth, pausing with his lips on the rim. “You should know by now that I always get what I want.” His eyes hardened, all humor vanishing as quickly as it had appeared. “And that includes Tara.”

  “She’s done with you.” More than anything, Keith wanted to beat the hell out of the guy, but he couldn’t turn his brother’s bachelor party into a brawl that would land them all in jail for the night.

  “You’ve been poisoning her mind against me.”

  Between the booming music and excited party-goers, Keith had to listen closely to decipher Biagio’s words, but there was no mistaking his warning. A threat was a threat in any language, and Keith knew Biagio was there to put him on notice. If he expected Keith to back down, he would be sorely disappointed. Keith would go to the mat for the people he cared about, and Tara was quickly moving to the top of that list.

  Keith crossed his arms. “She had your number a long time ago. She didn’t need me to tell her you were a loser.”

  Biagio’s nostrils flared as he leaned in closer. “She’s mine. You’ll never have her.”

  “You didn’t deserve her. She knows who and what you are, and she wouldn’t even consider taking you back. Do yourself a favor: move on.”

  “She’s going to be my wife.”

  Keith couldn’t believe how delusional the guy was. “She doesn’t want anything to do with you. She won’t answer your calls or respond to your texts. She refuses to see you.”

  “Is that what she told you?” Biagio chuckled. “She made love to me last night.”

  Keith felt his blood simmering. Not leveling the guy was taking all of his self-control. Biagio was obviously goading him, but part of Keith questioned if he was telling the truth. Tara hadn’t come in until after one o’clock. He knew because he’d waited up for her. She said she’d gone out for a drink with a friend, but she refused to look him in the eye and went straight to bed instead of watching the late show with him. A little voice in his head had questioned whether she might have been out on a date.

  They hadn’t shared another kiss, but that didn’t mean Keith hadn’t been tempted every damn day. “Get the hell out of here before I have you thrown out.”

  Biagio sneered. “That won’t be necessary. I did what I came here to do.”

  “You accomplished nothing, aside from making yourself look like a pathetic loser.” Keith had too much pride to let his adversary know he’d hit his mark, but he was probably doing a lousy job of hiding his jealousy. “Stay the hell away from her, or the next call you make will be from jail.”

  His lips curled. “Nothing can keep us apart.” He moved in closer and lowered his voice. “She still loves me.”

  Every muscle in Keith’s body clenched, along with his fists. Brent had always been the even-tempered one. Keith was the hothead, in and out of the boxing ring. “She doesn’t want you.”

  “You know that how?” Biagio rocked back on the heels of his expensive dress shoes. “It’s not because she’s sleeping with you.”

  “You don’t know shit about our relationship.” Keith wanted to claim that Tara was waiting for him in bed, but he knew the lie would probably only confirm Biagio’s suspicions. Keith pointed at him. “I’m not gonna tell you again. Stay the hell away from her. Don’t call her, text her, or try to see her. She’s done with you.”

  “We’ll see about that.”

  ***

  Tara was surprised to see Keith’s number on her screen. “Hey, what’s up? Are you guys having as much fun as we are?”

  “I need to see you.”

  Judging by his tone, he wasn’t asking. “Is there a problem?” She walked down the hall, hoping to find a quieter place to talk.

  “Yeah, but I don’t want to get into it over the phone. I need you to meet me at home. Now!”

  Keith had never been so abrupt with her. “What’s going on? I’m not leaving my best friend’s bachelorette party without a good reason.”

  Keith sighed. “Your ex-boyfriend crashed our party.”

  “What?” Tara smiled at Alisa, who was slipping out of the restroom. Stepping out into the backyard, Tara asked, “How the hell did he get past the bouncers? I thought it was supposed to be a private party.”

  “It was. I don’t know how the hell he got in. I guess he bribed someone.”

  Tara didn’t appreciate Keith’s tone, but she wasn’t in the mood to argue. “Fine, I’ll head out. I should be there in half an hour.” When he fell silent, she asked, “Happy now?”

  “No. I’ll be happy when I see you.”

  “Keith—”

  “Don’t even think about arguing with me. Until I find out whether anything your ex sai
d was true, I can’t even think straight.”

  The tension in his voice told Tara he was about ready to crack. She wasn’t surprised. Biagio had always been antagonistic, especially toward people he perceived as a threat. “Whatever he said—”

  “I don’t want to talk about it over the phone!” He sighed. “I’m sorry. Listen, can we just talk about this when you get home, please?”

  “Fine, I’ll see you soon.”

  Chapter Four

  Keith was pacing and cursing like a crazy man when Tara still wasn’t at his condo an hour and a half later. His TV was tuned to the lobby’s security camera. When he saw her face on the screen, he threw open his door and punched the elevator button, over and over again, until the doors finally opened. He couldn’t wait another second to see her.

  She was standing at the security desk talking to the night guard, Stan, when Keith stepped off the elevator. Obviously she doesn’t care that I’m slowly going out of my mind. Keith grinded his teeth as he approached.

  Brent owned the building, and all of the staff honored the residents’ privacy, but Keith knew Stan must be curious about why Tara was staying with him, unless she’d already told him. “Evening, Stan,” Keith said.

  “Good evening, Mr. Armstrong.”

  Tara smiled at Stan, totally oblivious to Keith’s dark mood. “You were telling me about your wife’s operation. How did it go?”

  “The recovery is going to be slow, I’m afraid.” He ran a hand over his balding head. “But the doc said that’s to be expected with back surgery.”

  Keith wasn’t surprised Tara had gotten to know Stan. She was outgoing and friendly to everyone. That’s one of the things he loved about her. Liked. That was one of the things he liked about her.

  “You have a good night, Stan,” Keith said, ushering Tara onto the elevator. He didn’t want to be rude, but he couldn’t wait another minute to talk to her. Once the doors were closed, he pushed the stop button.

  She frowned. “Why’d you do that?”

  “We need to talk.”

  “Can’t it wait until we get upstairs?”

  “Were you with him last night?”

  “Who?”

  Keith fisted his hands on his hips. He knew he was scowling, but he couldn’t help himself. He was pissed. At her. Her Ex. Himself. The world. “Biagio. Were you with him last night?”

  Tara laughed as though that was the most outrageous question she’d ever heard. “Who told you that? Him?” She rolled her eyes and pressed the button for Keith’s floor. “And you believed him? I had no idea you were so easy.”

  “I’m not easy, nor am I amused by his games. This is serious, and it’s about goddamn time you realized that.”

  She reached into her purse and extracted a package of mints. She offered him one and shrugged when he ignored her. Before popping one into her mouth, she said, “You’re blowing this whole thing out of proportion.” She stepped off the elevator and headed for his suite, forcing him to rush to catch up.

  Keith hated that she was so blasé about her ex crashing his party. “It’s open,” he muttered when she looked in her purse for the key.

  She kicked off her high heels and sank her bare toes into the plush, white entrance rug. “Ah, that feels good. My feet are killing me.”

  “I’m not surprised.” He looked at the five-inch heels she’d been sporting. “I’m amazed you haven’t broken your ankle in those things.”

  “Walking in those is the same as walking in flats when you get used to it.” She wandered into his kitchen, giving him no choice but to follow.

  Tara peered inside the fridge. “I should go shopping tomorrow.” She set a block of brie and some grapes on the counter, then she took out a bottle of white wine and closed the fridge door with her hip.

  She was wearing a pair of skinny jeans and a black, lacy tank top. Her curves had made her the target of every horny kid in their college classes. Some things never changed, Keith thought as he braced his hands on the counter behind him. He’d never known a woman so naturally stunning. She wore very little makeup, yet her skin had a flawless glow. Her dark hair wasn’t highlighted, but it fell in soft, shiny waves around her shoulders. She was fit but soft in all the right places. She had everything, yet she was so humble about her beauty. He admired that.

  “What are you looking at?” she asked, extracting the cork from the wine.

  “You’re gorgeous.” He hadn’t intended to compliment her. He had more important things on his mind, but the pretty blush staining her cheeks made him glad he hadn’t censored himself. “I mean it.”

  “Thank you.” She passed him a beer as he reached for the tray of grapes, cheese, and crackers she’d prepared. “Now, you wanna tell me what got you so freaked out tonight? Aside from the fact my ex conned you into believing we were together last night.” She giggled. “I still can’t believe you fell for that.”

  “I’m not laughing, Tara. Nothing about this is funny.”

  She took the tray and set it on the coffee table before setting her drink down beside it. “You need to lighten up.” She popped a cracker in her mouth and chewed carefully before asking, “So what else did he say?”

  “Aside from the fact that y’all had sex last night?”

  Her eyes went wide, and she covered her mouth. “He did not say that!”

  “Yeah, he did.”

  Keith sat beside her, resting his arm on the back of the soft, gray sofa Brent’s designer had convinced him to buy. He’d regretted the purchase ever since, but he placated himself with the reminder that she’d been a great lover.

  “I can’t believe he…” She shook her head. “Actually, I can. When he makes up his mind about something, he’s relentless. Apparently he’s decided we’re getting back together no matter how I feel about it.”

  “Like hell you are.” Keith knew the decision was hers and she hadn’t asked for his opinion, but if she even considered taking him back, Keith would find a way to stop her.

  “Is that so?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

  He reached for a stem of grapes and popped one into her mouth before she had time to protest. Grinning, he said, “I can think of another way to silence you, but I thought you might object to it.” They exchanged a heated glance, both remembering their kiss in her office. That was weeks ago, but Keith had been plagued by it every day.

  “Are you ready to admit you’re too weak to hold up your end of our deal?” she asked, feigning indifference and reaching for a square of cheese.

  Keith knew she was asking him whether he’d slept with anyone. “No way.”

  She chewed carefully as she regarded him. “You love sex, Keith. Everyone knows that. This is probably the longest you’ve ever gone without. Why are you doing this?”

  He watched her reach for her wine and waited while she took a sip. “You want the truth?” He knew it was time. They’d been dancing around their attraction for weeks, and it was making him crazy.

  “The truth always beats a lie.” She gave him a wry smile. “You’d do well to remember that.”

  “I want you.” He slid his hand into her hair and inched closer to her.

  Her eyes went wide when he took the glass out of her hands and set it on the table. “We talked about this,” she said, pressing against his shoulders. “Brent… Ava…”

  He didn’t wait for her to finish before he covered her mouth with his. She tasted like fine wine and that unique flavor that made him hunger for more. Sliding his hand up her ribcage, he deepened the kiss, gratified when she wrapped her arms around his neck instead of trying to push him away.

  Keith drew back long enough to look at her. She looked as drunk on lust as he felt. Alcohol had nothing to do with their attraction. He felt it bone deep even when he was stone cold sober. He knew she felt it too. They could run, but they couldn’t hide from it.

  “I want you,” he repeated, kissing her neck. He needed to make her feel the words instead of just hearing them. Every cell in his body
craved their connection, making it seem almost surreal.

  “You’ve gone without too long…” she whispered. “You just want a warm, willing body.”

  “You’re wrong.” He held her face, looking down at her. The intensity of the moment rocked him. He prayed she felt it too. “This has been a long time coming, Tara. I think we both know that.” They were compatible on so many levels, but his history made him a terrible bet for a girl who liked to play it safe.

  “I won’t deny I’m attracted to you.”

  He smiled. “You can’t.” Brushing his lips across her cheek, he said, “Neither one of us can deny this anymore. It’s too intense, too powerful. I’m tired of fighting it.”

  She slid her hands up the back of his shirt and caressed his bare skin as her eyes drifted closed. “We can’t tell your brother. Or Ava. She’d kill me.”

  He didn’t care if the world knew they’d been intimate. He wasn’t embarrassed or ashamed, but she might be. “Are you afraid they’ll call you a fool for going to bed with me?”

  Biting her lip, she stared into his eyes. “You can’t deny you have quite the reputation.”

  “Don’t judge me for the man I was yesterday.” His feelings for her, his need to protect her had changed him. Before, he had been all about taking care of himself, tending to his own needs. Now that seemed secondary. “Judge me based on the man I am today.”

  Tara caressed his cheek. “Are you saying you’ve changed? You’re not that same fun-loving guy who turned dating into an Olympic sport?”

  “You know I haven’t been with anyone since…” He tasted her lips to remind himself it wasn’t a dream. She was really there with him, making him believe she was everything he’d been waiting for and more than he deserved. “We kissed.”

  She grinned. “That was some kiss. But I hardly believe it was enough to turn you off other women. I’m not that naïve.”

  “No, you’re not naïve.” He brushed her wispy bangs off her forehead. “You’re astute and smart.” He kissed her again, not because he was trying to convince her he was sincere, but because he couldn’t stop kissing her. He knew she could easily become his addiction. “And sexy, fun, feisty…”