Sweet Seduction

by Camilla Stevens

  Natalie immediately eased the tension by putting out a hand. "Very nice to meet you Layla."

  She leaned in to look at her daughter. "Amber, can you say hi to Patrick and his new friend, Layla?"

  Amber had a head full of fat, silken, light brown curls, and skin the color of a vanilla latte. While the hair and skin fell right smack between mommy and daddy in terms of coloring, the hazel-green eyes were all daddy. And from the way he looked at her, daddy couldn't be more proud.

  "Pawick," she giggled reaching out, obviously familiar enough with him.

  "That's my girl," Patrick said, plucking her from Natalie's arms with a grin.

  “Oh, she comes bearing gifts,” Natalie said, noticing the bag in Layla’s hands. “I like her already.”

  “Well, come in,” Jake said moving out of the way to let them in.

  They passed through into a foyer that opened up into a cozy living room. She could tell right away that the house was much larger than it appeared from the front. It was tastefully decorated in neutral hues that gave it a pleasantly homey feel.

  “So I hope you don’t mind, but we thought it would be fun to do the cliché thing that sophisticated couples do”—the sarcasm was heavy here—”and sit around eating cheese and crackers and chatting, while the two of us finish cooking.”

  It sounded perfect to Layla.

  “What she really means is, she wants more time to pressure Patrick into proposing marriage already,” her husband said.

  That sounded a bit more daunting. Layla looked over at Patrick who gave her a grin that teasingly said: how about it? Obviously he was used to this sort of ribbing on their part.

  She just bit back a smile and shook her head at how casually silly everyone was behaving. Already she was liking it here.

  “Jake!” Natalie protested interrupting her walk to the kitchen to punch him lightly in the shoulder.

  He reached out and grabbed her in a bear hug, making her scream out a laugh. She laughed even louder as he picked her up from behind and carried her the rest of the way to the kitchen. The entire scene was so wonderfully sweet that everyone laughed along with them. Even Amber squealed with delight.

  Layla felt a twinge of envy at their happiness. She thought of Boris and how life with him, even in the beginning, had never been like this with him.

  She looked over at Patrick who was now swinging Amber around like superman, much to her delight. Despite their quarrelsome beginning, and she was woman enough to admit the fault lay mostly with her, they worked well together. Even outside of the bedroom.

  Despite her initial impression of him, he was nothing like Boris Sokolov.

  The cabinetry in the kitchen was in distressed oak with gray granite countertops and stainless steel appliances. It was decidedly cozy. Cheese, crackers, and fruit had already been laid out for them.

  Patrick settled on one of the stools around the island, holding Amber in his lap.

  “Can I do anything?” Layla offered, wanting to be helpful.

  “You can settle down next to Patrick and relax. We got this,” Natalie said. She turned to Jake. “Babe, can you open one of those bottles and get some glasses.”

  “Aye, aye, cap-i-tain,” he said, actually giving a salute.

  Natalie gave him a roll of the eye that told Layla she was used to such antics.

  “I hope you don’t mind, it’s parmesan, mushroom risotto with a salad and bread,” Natalie said, reaching in the fridge to pull out the ingredients.

  “Sounds delicious,” Layla responded.

  Jake poured wine for everyone except Natalie.

  “I’m just going to finish my water here,” she said, holding up the large glass next to her.

  Jake and Natalie stood on one side of the island chopping mushrooms and salad ingredients. Layla, Patrick, and Amber sat in the stools on the other side, sipping wine and eating cheese and fruit.

  “So I know all about the infamous cake debacle, and kudos to you for sticking it so righteously to Lion Studios,” Natalie said, pointing the end of her knife toward Layla, “but how exactly did you two end up together? It’s gotta be an interesting story.”

  Layla looked over at Patrick who was grinning at her as he bounced Amber in his lap. She stuck her fat fingers in his face and he pretended to gnaw on them with his lips curled in over his teeth. The tiny girl squealed gleefully yet again.

  Layla used the opportunity to tell her version of things. “He nearly ran into me, destroying yet another wedding cake. Speaking of which, what is it you Hollywood people have against wedding cakes?”

  “Hey, wait a second,” he said pulling his mouth away from Amber’s reach. “I seem to recall you pulling out into the middle of the street, and—”

  “I was already in the street,” she protested, laughing. “And you were speeding.

  Patrick paused, rolling his eyes up to the side to think about it. “Okay, yes I was speeding—”

  “And don’t think I didn’t notice you checking me out,” she added.

  “I seem to recall you paying particular attention to a certain part of my anatomy as well.”

  She recalled the implication of the size of his manhood in relation to the cost of his car. She bit back a smile.

  “Uh-huh,” he said, nodding in confirmation. “And I think we can both agree that I far exceeded expectations.” He grinned as he raised his eyebrows at her.

  “Patrick!” she gasped, then looked over at Jake and Natalie in embarrassment. They had both stopped prepping their food to watch them go at it with amused grins.

  “What do you think, Jake?” Natalie asked, giving her husband a secretive smile.

  “I think he’s a goner, Nat,” Jake said laughing as he resumed his chopping.

  Layla buried her face in her glass as everyone started laughing. Finally, she felt silly. So what if the two of them knew she and Patrick had had sex? Already she felt comfortable with Natalie and Jake. Eventually, she started laughing as well.

  “So how did you two meet?” she asked, pouring herself and Jake another glass from the bottle. Patrick had been far too preoccupied with Amber—who seemed incessantly amused by him chomping on her chubby, little fingers—to drink much of his.

  Natalie and Jake looked at each other with some secret amusement that only they understood. She was sautéing the mushrooms in butter while he had moved on to the bell peppers.

  “Well, I was just sitting there, minding my own business after finishing a novel. My eye was caught by the most spectacular vision across the room—”

  “Oh for Pete’s sake, Jake,” Natalie said, laughing. She turned to Layla with a matter-of-fact look on her face. “It was a one night stand. There, I said it.” She shrugged and turned back to stirring the mushrooms.

  Layla’s eyebrows went up at that.

  “Forgive me for trying to protect your honor,” Jake teased.

  Natalie just turned to give him a smirk.

  “It’s true,” Patrick laughed, noticing the look on Layla’s face.

  “It is,” Natalie confirmed, then gave Jake a mocking look of scorn. “You can even read all about it in one of Jake’s books.”

  Layla nearly choked on her wine and had a coughing fit, which caused everyone to laugh. Jake came around to pat her lightly on the back.

  “Sorry, I do have that effect on women,” he said.

  She laughed as she recovered.

  “Jake, stop teasing her,” Natalie said as she stirred the risotto that had been simmering.

  “But it obviously worked out,” Layla said noting how wonderful the two of them were together.

  Natalie paused and looked over at Jake, who gave her a look of such adoration it actually caused Layla’s heart to stop.

  “Yeah, I’d say it worked out,” Natalie said.

  “Yeah,” Jake said, giving her a small, intimate smile.

  By now, Amber was fast asleep against Patrick’s chest. Layla watched as he gently rubbed her back, looking down at her with a sweet s
mile. Her heart stopped yet again.

  That could be him with our daughter.

  The thought hit her like a bolt of lightning. She thought of the huge house up in Olla and all the promise it represented. He obviously loved children. It was so perfect it hurt.

  Except she couldn’t be his. There was one man standing in the way of her happiness. Her face fell and she hid it behind her wine glass.

  Every warning her parents had given her about Boris, every bit of woman’s intuition that had nagged at her during their marriage, every glaring red flag she had ignored, now came at her with a force so strong and lamentable that she wanted to go back in time and slap the stupid out of her 22-year-old self.

  Still, without it, she never would have been in Olla in the first place. Patrick never would have almost run into her. She wouldn’t be sitting there on that stool watching him with the promise of a future together.

  She smiled again and observed, simply enjoying the moment. A tender side she’d only seen in the bedroom was coming out in him as he sang some indecipherable lullaby to the little girl who had two fingers stuffed in her bow-shaped lips as her back rose up and down in the steady rhythm of sleep.

  “Why don’t you and Patrick take her back to her room?” Natalie suggested in a soft tone to her husband. “We womenfolk can finish up in here.”

  She winked at Layla, as though she knew exactly where her mind was going. Once they were gone, she turned her head away from the risotto to look at Layla.

  “He’s a good guy, Patrick. A little rough around the edges,” she chuckled, “but nothing a good woman couldn’t smooth out. I think he really likes you. I say that only because, not only have you finally got him to take me up on coming over to dinner again, but because he’s never actually brought someone with him.”

  Perhaps it was the wine, or maybe because Natalie had immediately put her at ease, but Layla felt comfortable opening up to her.

  “Yeah, he’s been great through all of this. I really do like him but, I don’t know,” she sighed. “I live up in Olla and he’s all the way down here in Los Angeles.”

  Natalie chuckled as she mixed the mushrooms into the risotto.

  “What?” Layla asked.

  “When Jake and I first got serious, he lived in New York and I lived out here. We worried about the same thing. But when two people really love one another, they make it work. Now look at us,” she smiled almost nostalgically as she looked to the side.

  “How often did Patrick drive up there?” Natalie asked.

  Layla reflected on how annoying it had been in the beginning—although now she knew she had been kidding herself—knowing that every weekend he’d be dropping into her bakery, ordering the same chocolate cupcake and then giving her that smirk as he constantly hung around.

  Natalie gave her a knowing look. “And now you’re down here with him, and he’s brought you to see his closest friends, and when you aren’t looking he stares at you like he is cementing your face to memory.”

  Layla blinked at that, flustered.

  Natalie laughed as she stirred the risotto, which was done now. “As a wise man once said to me, and I’m paraphrasing here, men just don’t do that unless they are whipped. Either that, or this man is in love.”

  She turned to Layla with a serious look. “I would like to think that Patrick picked a woman who knows better than to keep a man whipped.”

  There was an almost maternal but definite warning tone there. She was looking out for the man, and Layla could appreciate that. She certainly had her own guard standing watch over her back in Olla. Good friends like this were worth their weight in gold.

  “No, I,” then it hit her. “I think I actually lo—”

  They were interrupted by the two men coming back.

  “It smells like something is ready to go into my stomach,” Patrick announced.

  Layla shook her head in surprise and embarrassment. She had almost confessed to this perfect stranger. Her eyes darted back to Natalie who was giving her an almost ecstatic smile that said she completely understood. Then she turned back to her husband who walked over to kiss her with an ease that told Layla it was a habitual thing.

  The two of them were perfect. Just like she hoped she and Patrick would be one day. Perhaps they already were.

  They were eating diner out on the well-lit patio. The sound of the dark ocean that would have presented a spectacular view had it been daylight, provided a soothing background soundtrack.

  Jake poured the second bottle into their glasses. That’s when Layla noticed that Natalie was still drinking water.

  “If Patrick had told me about tonight, I could have whipped up something to bring for dessert instead of wine. I didn’t know you weren’t a drinker.”

  She gave Patrick a frown of disapproval. He really should have known better. He blinked at her in surprise, then twisted his head toward Natalie.

  “Wait a second, you do drink wine,” he protested. “That’s the whole reason we brought two bottles. I didn’t want to drink too much because I was driving, so it would have been silly to…”

  Layla tuned out the rest of his words as she watched the look that passed between Natalie and Jake. She thought back to Natalie drinking water while she cooked. Now this.

  “Oh my god!” she yelped happily, the wine subduing any tact she otherwise would have had.

  Jake and Natalie just laughed in response.

  “What?” Patrick said, still defensively clueless.

  “Shall we?” Jake asked, still looking at Natalie with a grin.

  She shrugged with a smile, “Well, we’ve already told my parents and your sister. We might as well.”

  “Is someone going to clue me in here?” Patrick asked with a frown.

  They both looked at him.

  “We’re expecting,” Natalie said. “Due in about six months. February.”

  “Congratulations!” Layla squealed, laughing with tipsy happiness.

  Patrick was still absorbing the information, blinking in surprise. Then he shook his head as it sunk in and a stupidly enormous grin came to his face.

  “Oh man!” he said rising out of his seat to go around to Jake. Jake rose out of his seat to accept the bear hug that Patrick offered him. They stayed like that for a few seconds, the brotherly bond they shared defying any macho embarrassment they might have otherwise felt. Then Patrick made his way to Natalie, who quickly rose out of her seat to accept her own, much gentler hug.

  Layla watched the entire thing from her side of the table, a happy, yet still unfamiliar observer. Rather than feeling awkward about it, she reveled in it. She used it as an opportunity to learn more about Patrick.

  It was like the layers of an onion peeling away from the Patrick she thought she knew. First, him and the adorable way he was with Amber. Then his perfectly down-to-earth friends who she had already decided she liked, even in the short time she’d spent in their company. Now the unadulterated joy he felt at their growing family.

  Yes, she absolutely loved Patrick Fitzgerald.

  22

  For probably the hundredth time in her life Layla watched as a happy couple sliced into a cake that she had made.

  This time was different.

  She felt a certain kinship with the newlyweds who were about to embark on their own new life together. In many ways, she felt as though she was starting an entirely new life herself.

  Everything about this night from the wedding cake, which was a masterpiece beyond even what she thought she had been capable of, to the man staring at her across the room who had been waiting for this exact moment to publicly make his move, represented a new beginning for her as well.

  “Congratulations!” the cheer went up around the room.

  She smiled at Patrick as he, along with all the other guests, raised their glasses and cheered as Samantha and Clark fed each other from the slice they had pulled from the cake.

  Samantha had fallen in love with the sketches Layla had sent her and the
result was even more amazing. Layla had taken their first date, watching the night sky, and fully incorporated it into the cake. To match the theme of the wedding, the cake was done in black with tiny white dots strategically placed to represent the night sky. A multitude of seashells made of white fondant were placed at various points around each the base of each tier. It was ambitious but she had pulled it off.

  The oohing and ahhing as it was revealed told Layla that the concern she’d had about it turning out wrong was for naught. It was spectacular.

  She turned back to where Patrick had been standing and found he was gone.

  “I think you deserve this more than anyone,” she heard his voice say behind her as his hand came around to her front holding a flute of champagne.

  She smiled and took the glass as he came around.

  “To the world’s best cake decorator,” he said raising his glass to hers.

  “Well, I don’t know about that, but I’ll take it,” she said tapping her glass to his.

  “I think they’d agree with me,” he said, nodding his head toward Samantha and Clark who were smiling happily as they stared into each other’s eyes while the caterers took over slicing up the rest of the cake.

  “This party is…something else,” she said looking around as she sipped from her glass.

  Black and White was an understatement. The huge ballroom had been turned into a paradise with white curtains and black sashes covering all the walls. Black tablecloths covered the tables with white square place-settings. Tastefully huge bouquets of white tulips filled black square vases and were surrounded by small white square votives holding candles, bringing soft lighting to each table. The lighting was dark while strategically placed spotlights dimly lit up the many food stations.

  Spencer Simon may have taken over the “theme” of the wedding, but Layla had to admit that the man, or whoever he had hired, had taste.

  “This is what being a big wig in Hollywood can get you, this and the best looking wedding cake I’ve ever seen,” he said grinning at her.

  “Well, hopefully the review next week will reflect that,” she laughed, finishing off her champagne.