by L. T. Marie
“You’re just in time,” Coal said. She grabbed Angel by the arm to pull her into the house.
“Where the hell have you been? I tried calling you all afternoon.”
“Sorry. I took Dax for a ride and cell reception sucks up on the hill. Jefferson stopped by to see my dad so I stayed gone for most of the day. Now I’m trying to get ready for my date with Jay and I have nothing to wear!”
“Damn, woman, take a chill pill.” Angel dragged Coal toward her bedroom and into the massive walk-in closet. “You call this nothing to wear? You have more clothes than Nordstrom’s. Go on. Model something for me.”
Fifteen minutes later, Coal had tried on numerous combinations from slacks to skirts. After hearing Angel say “that’s cute” for the hundredth time, she was ready to strangle her with the Gucci belt in her hand.
“Why did you stop?” Angel asked.
“Because you’re not helping,” Coal said. She knew she sounded desperate. Because she was. “Please, Angel. This is important. Help me find something.”
“Honey, you’ll be beautiful no matter what you decide to wear. If I were you, though, I’d be more worried about that rat’s nest you call hair. It’s still damp and Jay will be here any minute.”
“Oh no!” Coal flew into the bathroom and pulled out her hairdryer. “Angel, please. You have to pick out something for me.”
While Coal used a straightener to put the finishing touches on her hair, Angel sifted through a dozen or so items, finally choosing a pair of designer white jeans and a sheer yellow scooped neck shirt with a matching silk shell for underneath.
“You think she’ll like that?”
“I think it’s perfect. Besides,” she pointed to Coal’s iPad. “It says right here in Fashion Weekly, yellow is in.”
Coal grabbed the jeans and had them halfway up her thighs when Angel began to laugh. “What’s so funny?” Coal asked around the toothbrush sticking out of her mouth.
“I’ve never seen you this nervous before. It’s kind of cute.”
“Glad I can amuse you.” Coal threw her hands over her face. “Seriously though, Angel. What am I doing? I’m supposed to be lying low, not going out on a date with her.”
“Then why are you doing it?”
She’d been asking herself this question since Jay asked her out. She could lie and say she needed a night out. She could be grateful and say that someone had wanted to date her not because of who her family was but who she was as a person. That it felt good knowing that Jay wanted no one but her. But the truth was, she wanted Jay with everything in her. Being near Jay was more intoxicating than any liquor she’d ever encountered. But most of all, every time Jay looked at her, she could see that unreserved hunger written all over her face. And if given the chance, she planned to unleash that beast and all its fury. “Because I can’t control myself around her any longer. And I know she feels the same way. I’m really falling for her, Angel.”
“And that’s a bad thing?”
“I guess not. Neither is wanting to rip her clothes off.”
Angel let out a hardy laugh and stood to place a comforting arm around her shoulders. “Promise me you’ll go out and have a lot of fun tonight. And I mean a lot.”
Coal’s spirits lifted as the doorbell rang. “God, Angel, what would I do without you?”
“No use wasting brain power on something you’ll never have to worry about. Now go enjoy your night with that stud of yours. I expect a full report, complete with mouth-watering details, in the morning.”
Coal laughed. “My mouth is watering just thinking about those details.”
*
Jay stood on Coal’s front porch holding a fresh bouquet of purple and yellow wildflowers. She couldn’t stop her hands from shaking, considering this whole dating idea was a new experience for her. Maybe the idea was crazy and Coal was right. People like her didn’t date. People with her track record screwed and didn’t commit because commitment meant responsibility and putting someone else’s interests above your own. But here she stood wanting to prove that she could be so much more than someone only good enough to share a bed with for a few hours. With a trembling hand, she raised her fist to knock again when the door swung open, revealing the woman who had been starring in her fantasies for weeks.
“Hi,” Coal said shyly.
Angel exited the house and pushed past both of them with a huge, cat got the canary grin.
“You two have fun,” Angel said from somewhere behind, but Jay was too focused on the hint of cleavage beneath Coal’s sheer scoop-neck blouse to pay any attention to her.
“You look incredible.” Jay held out the flowers. “For you.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” she whispered. She cradled Coal’s jaw with her palm and tilted her head for a kiss.
“Mmm,” Coal said when she finally opened her eyes. “That was nice.”
“Nice, huh? I was going for hot and tempting.”
“You are both of those.” Coal wrapped her arms around Jay’s neck.
Jay leaned forward and kissed her again, this time with a bit more urgency. As Coal broke the kiss, she angled her head back giving Jay better access to her neck.
“I see you’re not going to make this easy for me.”
“I don’t want it to be easy. Hard is definitely the plan.”
“Then you’re on the right track and we need to stop. Because dating rules be damned, if those sensual lips touch my skin one more time, I’m going to drag you inside and finish this.”
“Ooh, I think I’m going to like being with someone so forceful.” Jay grabbed Coal around the waist and crushed their bodies together. She could think of nothing but assuaging the aching need within her that she knew only Coal’s touch could banish. “I think I broke one of your rules. What’s the punishment?”
“I can think of several—”
Like a startled cat wary of impending danger, Coal froze and dug her fingers into Jay’s shoulders when the sounds of a car could be heard through the thick patch of trees. The stress was so clearly etched in the deep creases between Coal’s brows that Jay didn’t resist when Coal grabbed her by the hand and swiftly led her to the truck.
“Everything okay?” Jay asked.
Tightly, Coal said, “Of course. Let’s go enjoy that meal you promised me.”
With every mile travelled, Coal’s hands twitched less where they rested on her legs, and she stopped surveying the passing landscape as if she expected someone to materialize out of thin air. This wasn’t the first time Jay had witnessed Coal’s curious behavior, and whatever was causing this tightly coiled tension was obviously taking its toll on Coal. In an effort to help relax Coal, Jay kept the conversation light as they made their way to a small Italian restaurant located not too far from the Stanford campus. Jay listened intently as Coal told her all about the years she had spent at Stanford and how much she enjoyed the college experience.
“So if you loved it so much, how come you went to New York to get your master’s?”
Jay regretted her question when the tension returned to Coal’s body and her eyes hardened. “Circumstance. Besides, I needed away from my dad for a while, and New York seemed like the perfect choice. I returned not too long before you and I met.”
“What was your major?”
“Business with a minor in economics. After I got my MBA, I planned to own and operate my own horse ranch. I just didn’t imagine it would happen so soon.”
Jay recalled the conversation they’d shared that day in Half Moon Bay regarding why Coal had been put in charge of the ranch. She reached for her hand. “I’m really sorry about your grandfather. Is your grandmother still alive?”
“No,” Coal said. “She died in the accident with my grandfather.”
“Oh, baby. I’m so sorry.”
“Thanks. But enough about my life. Let’s talk about you. I’m sure working with your cousin is great, but you’re really talented. Ever aspire to owning your o
wn contracting business someday?”
“Yes,” Jay said but wasn’t sure how much she should elaborate. When her college dreams ended, she’d given up on the idea of owning anything and settled for a task-oriented job with a steady paycheck. She’d never discussed her dreams with anyone before, partly because she didn’t want people, her family especially, to think she was being foolish. What were dreams without money to support them?
Jay pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant and cut the engine. She turned to face Coal. “I’d love to go back to school and get my contractor’s license, but I can’t find the time.”
“Well, if you did, you’d have clients beating down your door. And I have inside information on one client who would like to see much more of your…handiwork.”
Even though Coal’s words were full of innuendo, Jay couldn’t see past her own self-doubt to allow them to affect her. She stared at their joined hands and rubbed Coal’s palm with her thumb. She fought with telling Coal about her past family issues, a topic that was never discussed outside of a few close family members.
“Hey.” Coal shook her hand lightly. “Something I said?”
“I’m fighting whether to tell you something. I want to, but I’m worried it will make you think less of me.”
“Not possible.” Coal intertwined her fingers through Jay’s. “Look, I know this dating stuff is all new for you. But if this becomes something more, I want you to be able to trust me. To know that I’ll be there for you.”
Jay took a deep breath wanting to believe everything Coal was saying, but some genies couldn’t be put back into the bottle once freed. If she wanted a chance with Coal though, Jay had to make Coal aware of her day-to-day reality. “Because I do want more, I want to share something with you, but we haven’t even started our first date and I don’t want to scare you off.”
“Oh, honey. One thing I do understand is that life is difficult. Whatever you tell me, I promise, I won’t judge you.”
Jay nodded and squeezed Coal’s hand. “A few years ago, my father worked as a handyman for a family in Woodside and stole some items to feed his habit. The day he was arrested, I got a call to come bail him out. I didn’t have fifty thousand lying around so I had to put my aunt’s house up for collateral. She left it to me when she died, and I promised her on her deathbed that it would always stay in the family.”
“That’s a lot to take on,” Coal said carefully. “Honestly, I think you’re amazing for doing it all.”
“Thanks, but wait, there’s more.” She cleared her throat, hating to have to admit what came next. “The bail bondsman was a friend of the family so he felt comfortable putting up the bond so my dad could get out. I gave him the five thousand, which was my entire savings, because I had to put up ten percent, and he covered the rest using the house for collateral. The only way to screw up was if my dad didn’t show for the court date. All he had to do was show for the damn date.”
Coal gasped. “Oh no!”
“Not quite what I said.” Jay smiled ruefully. “They finally caught him in Oregon during a random drug bust and sent him back to California. He was sentenced for three to five, and I became responsible for that debt. I took out another loan on the house to pay off the bond, and now with the bigger mortgage, I can’t afford to live there so I rent it out. That’s why I live in a small, two-room apartment with Shiloh. So you see, I’m always struggling. Now do you understand why I was scared about whatever this is happening between us? I see people like Jefferson and know they can give you so much more than me. You’re so damn beautiful and deserve everything—”
Coal grabbed Jay with both hands by the collar of her jacket and shook her. “Don’t you ever say something like that to me again. Do you hear?”
“But, Coal. You need to know what you’re getting yourself into.”
“God, you’re stubborn!” With that, she kissed Jay, hard. “Listen to me. You are more than enough for me. There’s not one thing about you that I would change. And honestly, I’m hurt you think so little of me.”
“You can’t be serious. I think the world of you. Christ, you’re all I think about.”
“Then why do you think it’s any different for me? As for your dad, I know firsthand what it’s like for a parent to let us down. I don’t blame you for his mistakes, although I could kill him for hurting you and leaving you with his mess.”
Feeling lighthearted, Jay walked around to Coal’s side of the truck to open her door. She offered Coal her arm, feeling richer than any other time in her life. “You know, I really lucked out when I met you,” Jay said with a small smile.
Coal laughed and hugged Jay’s side. “I know. And don’t you forget it.”
Chapter Thirteen
Coal liked the possessive way Jay threaded her arm around her waist as they walked into the charming bistro. After Jay spoke a few words in Italian to the host, they were seated at a small corner booth next to a beautiful stone fireplace.
“I didn’t realize you spoke Italian.”
“I know enough to get by,” Jay said. “My uncle and aunt tried to teach me when I was a kid. Sometimes I wish I had paid more attention.”
Coal’s knee brushed against Jay’s under the table, and she fought to keep her hands to herself, knowing that if she started touching Jay again, she wouldn’t be able to stop. “I can’t believe I went to school down the street and never heard of this place.”
“Probably because my uncle Mario has only owned it for the last few years. He bought it for my aunt because she loves to cook, and now she cooks for hundreds of people a day. Guido, his son, and of course one of my other cousins, promised to help me out by keeping our special evening just between us.”
Jay winked at a young waiter who arrived with a bottle of Merlot and an order of bruschetta. After pouring them both a glass, he quickly disappeared behind the swinging kitchen doors.
“Was that Guido?
“How did you guess?”
“He looks a little bit like Dino, but he’s got your shit-eating grin,” Coal said around a sip of wine.
“Yep, he’s Dino’s younger brother. And what shit-eating grin?”
Coal laughed and leaned into Jay to kiss the corner of her mouth. “That one.”
“What can I say? It’s a famous DiAngelo trait.”
“Maybe. But the others don’t wear it as well as you. Is this their only restaurant?”
Jay nodded. “This is the only one around here, but some other members of my family have restaurants elsewhere. For instance, my cousin, Dakota, owns Santini’s in Seattle.”
“Interesting. So, if your family enjoys the restaurant business, how did you and Dino become contractors?”
“Dino hated working in a restaurant so he took the college route. He was the first one in the family to graduate college and soon after got his contractor’s license. I washed dishes for my uncle for two years before Dino pulled me out of the kitchen and gave me a job. Uncle Mario actually owns two businesses. One is this restaurant and the other is an auto shop that he owns with his other two sons in the city.”
Coal raised her eyebrows in surprise. “A restaurant and an auto shop?”
“I know. Crazy, right?”
Coal intertwined her fingers with Jay’s liking the way the strong fingers squeezed back. “No. Not crazy at all.”
“I thought you said no touching.”
“Did I?” Coal smiled seductively as Jay’s eyes ignited. She loved teasing her, but they were in a restaurant and what she wanted to do would surely get her arrested in public. Once she released Jay’s hand, she took her time to peruse the menu choices. “It says here, old world Sicilian cuisine. Aren’t Sicilian and Italian the same thing?”
“It depends on who you ask,” Jay said around a bite of homemade focaccia bread. “It’s a sore subject in some circles. Sicily is located south of Italy, and the joke is that it’s the island that the boot is kicking. Sicily’s population tends to be poorer than Italy’s. And centurie
s ago, it was a major trading port that was invaded frequently by many different cultures. Between the mix of cultures and the Italian prisoners that were sent there, the Italians eventually believed that the Sicilians could never be considered of pure blood.”
“Pure blood? Sounds like a bad vampire novel. Who is pure anything anymore?”
“Right?” Jay said lightly, but her look was contemplative.
“So what do you consider yourself then?”
“Well, my dad told me once that I’m half Sicilian, but my mother was from a small town in northern Italy that he conveniently can’t remember!” Jay said as Coal laughed.
“That’s funny. Couldn’t you ask your mom where she’s from?”
Jay’s laughter died and her expression became pensive once more. “No. She split when I was young.”
“I’m sorry. That must have been tough.”
“It was, but I survived. Anyway, I got the dark skin and the big nose from my dad’s side, which are prominent Sicilian traits.”
“Why are you frowning?”
“The nose…why else? It’s another famous DiAngelo trait. Unfortunately, it’s not very attractive.”
Coal reached across the seat, placing her hand on Jay’s cheek. “That’s where you’re wrong. There isn’t one part of your body that’s not attractive. Trust me on this.”
“You’re doing that touching thing again,” Jay said, her voice husky. “No fair, Ms. Davis.”
Coal leaned forward, and with her lips a whisper from Jay’s said, “Who said life was fair, Ms. DiAngelo?”
For the next hour, Coal kept her hands preoccupied by either holding a utensil while she ate or by hiding them under the table. She’d made Jay promise not to touch her, but as the evening progressed, the need for Jay to reach for her became almost painful. Over the course of dinner, she had inched closer to Jay and soon became fascinated by the slow circles Jay was unconsciously making with the tip of her finger along the rim of her wineglass. She wondered what it would be like to have those fingers touching her intimately. And when the need to be closer to her became too great, she closed the distance between them in the booth and molded her thigh to Jay’s. “So, what do you have in mind for the rest of this evening?”