Wicked Flirt

by Kylie Gilmore

  She laughed. “Uh-huh.”

  “Really!” He gestured for how tall and wide the guy was.

  She shook her head, smiling.

  He took a sip of wine, his dark eyes intent on hers. “Tell me more about you. Favorite place, favorite food, favorite wine, very important to know the wine since I own a bar—tell me everything that’s important to you.”

  She stared at him, stunned. No man had ever asked what was important to her.

  He waited, looking back at her expectantly.

  And because he really did seem to care about her, she rattled off the answers. “Favorite place is Manhattan. I just love the energy, all the people and activity. Favorite food would be a tie between chicken marsala and the ro-jis that my mom makes. They’re like a Chinese hamburger, but instead of beef, it’s seasoned pork that’s been cooked all night in cardamon and cloves, and I don’t even know what else is in it. Plus the buns are homemade.”

  “Your mom’s Chinese?”

  “She’s half Chinese, also part Irish, Italian, and Puerto Rican.” She lifted a lock of her stick-straight dark brown hair. “My hair is from the Chinese side.”

  “Your hair is like silk. I love it.”

  She felt herself flush. There was a time she was desperate to look like some of her friends with waves or curls, but her hair was uncooperative and, it turned out, those friends wished their hair could be as straight as hers. “Thanks. People are always curious about my ethnicity, mostly because of my hair, tan skin tone, and the downward slant of my eyes.”

  “Does it bother you?”

  “Actually, yeah. It’s like they want to pigeonhole me for some reason. Some people are rude. Like they’ll say, ‘What are you?’ Some people just guess.” She cocked her head in imitation of the rude people. “Latina? Asian? Mixed race?”

  Marcus scowled. “So rude. And what do you say?”

  “I tell them I’m an American mutt because it’s none of their freaking business.”

  He grinned. “I knew you’d have a good comeback. Everyone’s a bit of something here. I’m a mutt too.”

  She smiled, and then he unexpectedly barked, startling her. She cracked up. Some people from nearby tables looked over, and she tried to calm herself, but then he started growling and woofing, and she lost it.

  Finally when she calmed down, she wiped her eyes and took a sip of wine. “This is the best wine I’ve ever tasted. This is my new favorite.”

  “Then I’ll be sure to keep it in stock at the bar.”

  She shook her head. “You’re almost too good to be true.”

  “And to think you didn’t like me when we first met.”

  “I liked you okay.”

  He wagged his finger at her. “I caught the evil eye you sent my way on more than one occasion.”

  She bit back a smile. “Caught that, huh?” She lifted her palms. “I just thought you were a man-whore.”

  He snorted. “I thought you were a man-hater, so I guess we’re even.” He gestured her closer and she leaned in. “Truth? I always thought you were hot.”

  She grinned. “I thought you were cute too.”

  “Cute?” He wrinkled his nose in pure disgust. “You don’t reduce this hunk of manhood to cute!”

  “Pleasant?”

  “Nope.”

  “Lovely.”

  He gestured her on. “Getting closer.”

  “Darling.”

  His voice dropped to a husky tone. “All right, you can call me darling, sweetheart.”

  She melted into a puddle of lovey-dovey couple goo.

  And she never quite recovered. The meal was delicious, Marcus kept up a steady stream of questions, wanting to get to know her, and he did his part in sharing more about himself. It felt like they were old friends. Except for the occasional smoldering looks he gave her.

  By the time he dropped her off at her apartment, she was dying to get him alone. She stopped at her door and turned to him. “You want to come inside?” And I mean that as dirty as it sounds.

  He placed a palm on the door above her head, and she flushed hot, his musky sexy scent making her crazy. He dipped his head, leaning close, and her pulse skyrocketed. She closed her eyes, nearly vibrating in anticipation.

  His lips met her cheek in a chaste kiss.

  Her eyes flew open.

  He straightened, his voice gravelly. “See you tomorrow, sweetheart.” Then he turned and strode away.

  She sank against the door. “Bye, darling,” she whispered.

  She’d never uttered such sweet words in her life, would’ve found it embarrassing if her friends heard, but just saying them made her feel warm and tingly all over. She could scarcely believe this romance thing was actually happening for her. It was incredible. He was incredible.

  She sighed, lost in the wonder of it all. She finally understood what ailed her lovey-dovey friends because now she was infected with it too. All it took was one wonderful man.

  Holy crap, she was in love.

  It scared the hell out of her. Her trust in men was so low it was really hard not to think the worst of guys. Growing up with a cheating, lying father, then watching her brother repeat the cycle, and then experiencing it for herself with her ex—when she should’ve known better, should’ve seen the signs—all of it made her want to turn away from Marcus.

  She let herself into her apartment and stopped short at the glorious sight of her roses in bloom. The reminder of his romantic gesture made her warm and gooey. She couldn’t walk away never knowing what might have been. Her gut instinct told her he was worth the risk.

  It was time to take a chance on love.

  Chapter Nine

  Lexi drove to The Burrow with Hailey the next day, their other friends all coupled up and driving with their guys. Hailey was at the wheel in her beloved orange Mini Cooper convertible. She even had a small fake daisy in the cup holder. Rose was curled up asleep in her cozy Sherpa-lined bucket seat in the backseat.

  Lexi was ridiculously excited about seeing Marcus again after their fantastic date yesterday. He’d texted her earlier today saying how much he was looking forward to seeing her. Swoon! She was dying for more than a chaste kiss on the cheek tonight. She’d dressed to tempt in a black long-sleeved skin-tight dress that ended mid-thigh with black pumps. It didn’t matter what he dressed in because he was always unbelievably sexy. Chemistry would do the rest. Speaking of simmering chemistry…

  “How’s things going with your mom and Joe?” Lexi asked Hailey. “Do they like living together?”

  “I guess,” Hailey said flatly. “She says she’s in love with him.” Normally Hailey would be ecstatic about love. She considered herself a love junkie—it was on her official wedding planner business card—and lived for romance, whether it was in a book, a movie, or real life.

  “You’re not happy about it? Joe seems great.”

  “It’s not Joe that’s the problem.” Hailey flicked her long strawberry blond hair over her shoulder and hit the accelerator through a yellow light. They were in the city now, only blocks away from The Burrow. “She falls in love easily. It won’t last. I just don’t want Joe to get hurt. He already had his wife abandon him with six kids! He hasn’t had anyone serious since. Mad is all excited that we might become sisters if they get married, but when my mom flakes, which she always does, Mad won’t be so keen on me anymore by association.”

  “She’s your best friend. I’m sure she won’t blame you for that.”

  “It’ll leave a really bad impression. Every time anyone in the Campbell family looks at me, they’ll see my mom and how she hurt their dad.”

  “Why do you care so much what the Campbells think of you?” Lexi suspected it was Josh’s opinion that mattered the most to Hailey.

  Hailey sighed. “It’s just that they’re the closest thing to a stable family I’ve ever had. I mean, Mad makes me feel like family, so does Joe, and I guess I don’t want to lose that.”

  They were a pretty cool family, and she
could see why Hailey might be worried about them associating her with her mom since they looked so much alike. “Well, I guess it’s still early days, right?”

  Hailey honked at a taxi that had cut her off. “It’s been almost seven weeks. Ask me how I know this.”

  “She’s oversharing with you?”

  “Way, way oversharing. Apparently Joe is an animal in bed. Dominant, don’t ya know? What can you expect from a cop? She likes the handcuffs. Do I need to hear this from my mother?” Her voice echoed loudly in the tiny car.

  Lexi winced. “I get the feeling you don’t get along with your mom.”

  Hailey sighed. “I’m trying, you don’t know how hard I’m trying, but it’s like she was always more of a roommate than a mom to me. She didn’t want the responsibility of a kid, but she was stuck with me. My dad died when I was three, and he wasn’t around much anyway, from what she says. I mean, I know she loves me, but…” She took a deep breath. “She was very flaky when I was growing up, not showing up to work, getting fired a lot. It was scary for me. We were homeless twice because she didn’t pay rent and we were evicted. I started on the pageant circuit in my teens, trying to earn money for college so I could make my own more stable life. At least with the pageants, she stopped being flaky. She was so thrilled I was doing them because she thought I was following in her footsteps. The pageants led to her modeling career. Anyway, she started working at that shop we went to for Mad’s bridal party stuff, just for the employee discount so she could buy me nice dresses.”

  “So it sounds like she’s been stable for a while, then, right? Maybe she just had some growing up to do.”

  “Maybe. I guess I just wish she’d been grown up when I really needed her, you know?”

  “Parents, right? We’ll probably screw up our kids too in some different way.”

  “Not me.” Hailey slapped the steering wheel to emphasize her point. “I’m going to read every parenting book on the market and follow them to the letter.”

  “Errr, well, I guess that wouldn’t hurt to brush up on, but…don’t you kinda have to wait and see what your kids are like?”

  Hailey lifted her chin. “I will mold them into model citizens.”

  “Hmm…” Poor kids.

  Hailey craned her neck, looking all around. “Start looking for a parking space. So how’s things with you and Marcus?” Lexi had filled in her friends earlier that they were now a thing.

  She beamed, sharing the wonderful news she hadn’t dared to say out loud. “He adores me.”

  “Awwww! That’s so sweet! I’m so happy for you. You know I wasn’t sure about him at first because he just flirts with everyone and, of course, we all know his rep, but hey! Good on you. So you must not mind the flirting?”

  She swallowed hard, her previous happiness fading a little. “He’s just being nice.” A warning bell went off in her head. This was just like her mother, making excuses for her dad’s lecherous behavior. No, Marcus wasn’t like that, he was one of the good guys. “He said he believes in monogamy now.”

  “Yeah?” Hailey chirped. “What changed?”

  Lexi tensed. What had changed? How had he explained it again? “I guess just him seeing so many happy couples. He’s a good guy. He was just screwed up for a while because of his ex-wife, but he’s changed now.”

  “Oh, I didn’t know he was married before. Okay, well, if you’re fine with everything, no worries.”

  Lexi set her teeth. Clearly Hailey disapproved of Marcus. “Josh is flirty with lots of women that come into the bar.”

  “Josh isn’t my boyfriend.”

  Hailey put her blinker on, pulled to the side, and waited for a parking space behind a car that was leaving. She turned to Lexi. “I’m just looking out for you. One thing I’ve learned through my years as a wedding planner and love junkie is that the relationships that work out are the kind where the couples don’t try to change each other. They love and accept the other person exactly as they are.”

  “You taking notes?”

  “Actually, yes.” She glanced at the car slowly pulling away in front of them. “I’ve got tons of notes on every successful relationship I’ve been witness to, especially once I started the Happy Endings Book Club.” She hit the gas and neatly fit her little car into the vacant space. “I started it as a singles book club and, since no men ever joined, it became my personal mission to see every single one of you happily settled with the man of your dreams. You were the last single lady in there, and now that you have Marcus, my work here is done.”

  Hailey turned off the car and they both got out. Lexi waited while Hailey snapped on Rose’s leash and took her for a potty break. She’d figured the matchmaking in their book club had been Hailey’s agenda all along. Now Hailey was the only single woman left in the Happy Endings Book Club.

  “What’s up with Josh?” Lexi asked. “What happened that night you went to his place to get your money? You’ve been so close-lipped about it.”

  Hailey busied herself arranging Rose in her pink doggie purse, which coordinated with her long white wool coat, pink scarf, and high-heeled white boots. Probably dressed to kill under the coat. She started walking at a brisk pace.

  “Hailey?” Lexi pressed, keeping up with her.

  “Nothing to report on Josh.” Hailey stared straight ahead, chin up. “From now on, I’ll be applying all the most effective dating techniques to my own life and search for my happy-ever-after in earnest. Maybe I’ll meet someone tonight.”

  Lexi stared at Hailey. Josh wouldn’t be here tonight since he was working, but Lexi and her friends had always thought Josh was the obvious choice for Hailey. Their sexual chemistry was palpable. And who cared if they were always fighting? The minute they hit the sheets, the tension would be neutralized and they’d get along great. Although…they were very different. Hailey was ambitious and driven, always dressed up and made up like she was about to be photographed for a glossy magazine. Josh, on the other hand, was laid-back, mellow, and dressed like he’d just grabbed whatever was handy when he rolled out of bed, mostly flannel shirts, T-shirts, and faded jeans. Hmmm…maybe sexual chemistry wasn’t everything. Besides, something had gone down that night at Josh’s place that seemed to have made a permanent rift between the pair.

  Hailey was babbling away about how she was going to conduct a serious Mr. Right search just as soon as she could find the time in her schedule, but all Lexi could think about was Marcus. She couldn’t remember ever feeling like this, jittery with excitement, actual butterflies in her stomach over seeing him again.

  She and Hailey walked inside The Burrow and spotted their friends in a group near the end of the bar. Not everyone was here. Mad had a big paper due (she was finishing up her last semester of college), and the parents in their group had stayed home, but everyone else had made it. She was especially happy to see her formerly single-in-solidarity friend Missy, back from her romantic getaway with her fiancé, Ben.

  “Missy!” She ran over and hugged her. “Look at this tan!” She gestured to her face. Her formerly pale friend glowed. Her dark brown hair was even showing some auburn highlights from the sun, probably her natural red shining through. “How was Aruba?”

  “Amazing!” Missy gushed, which said something because Missy was very low-key.

  “Did you wear the bikini?” Lexi asked. That had been a gift from Ben. Basically just string.

  “Once,” Missy said, exchanging a secret sexy look with Ben. He grinned, showing his adorable dimples.

  Lexi held up a palm. “Say no more.”

  Missy laughed. “It was wonderful. Really, really special.”

  Ben put an arm around Missy’s shoulders and gave her a small squeeze.

  Lexi looked around for Marcus and found him standing on her left just outside the employees-only door. He was talking to Ellie, who was smiling up at him in a midriff tee and tight jeans. Sure, she had large breasts and a tiny waist—the kind men drooled over—and the striking combination of long dark hair wi
th blue eyes, but that didn’t mean Marcus had intentions. Ellie was his employee and they were just talking. Dammit, now she was tense. Hailey had gotten in her head with the flirting stuff. She was extra sensitive to that with her past experiences with men. Stop it. This man was worth taking a chance on. She blew out a breath, telling herself to chill.

  She lifted a hand and called his name. No response. He was so deep in conversation with Ellie he didn’t even notice her.

  “Marcus!” she called as she walked toward him. Still didn’t notice her.

  Be cool.

  She closed the distance, standing so close to Marcus she could feel his body heat. And he still didn’t notice her! He was thoroughly engrossed in a low hushed conversation with Ellie.

  “Hi!” she said brightly. “I’m here.”

  Marcus’s head jerked to her, and then he flashed a devastatingly handsome smile that made her pulse thrum and her body flush with heat. He murmured something to Ellie and finally shifted his attention to her. “I was waiting for you.” He leaned down and kissed her cheek. “How’re you doing?”

  “Fine.” Not jealous. Nope, not me.

  He gazed down at her warmly. “Awesome.”

  Ellie gave Lexi a tight smile. “I’m having some trouble with a clingy ex. Marcus had to walk me home last night and check the apartment to make sure it’s safe.” She turned to Marcus. “You’re coming up tonight too, right? After the party?”

  “Sure, sweetheart,” Marcus said in a soothing voice. “I don’t want you to worry. Tomorrow I’ve got the security alarm guy coming in to set you up.”

  Sweetheart. Suddenly Marcus calling her sweetheart yesterday didn’t feel as special. She’d nearly forgotten he said that to all women.

  Ellie looked up at him, widening her eyes, playing helpless girl to big strong man. “You know I appreciate that, but it’s not the same as letting him know I’ve got a muscled man like you standing guard.”

  He laughed. “I want to know you’re safe when I’m not here.”

  Lexi’s stomach clenched, their intimate conversation excluding her once again.

  “I’ll see you later,” Marcus told Ellie.