Tammy and I exchanged numbers before I left Aspen and had kept in touch with weekly calls. Texas was about as far from Manhattan as you could get and even further from my roots as an English heiress, but Tammy had quickly turned into one of the closest friends I’d ever had. I knew I could trust her and I knew she wouldn’t judge me regardless.
“Well, I couldn’t very well start something with him while we worked for the same company, could I?” I’d kept her in the dark about finding Jeffrey again these last few weeks. Partly because I knew she’d convince me to go after him before I was ready.
I was ready now, though and in need of all the convincing she could give me.
“The hell you can’t! I say go after that fine piece of man meat the next chance you get. Screw your suffocating and inflated sense of responsibility. Have some damn fun, Serene.”
I sighed. “I worked hard to earn the respect of my peers. I wouldn’t dare undermine it with an office fling.”
“Hmrph. From what I gathered, this thing with you and Mr. Sexy has potential for more than a fling.”
I didn’t say anything.
“I’m not wrong, am I? Look, Serene, by all means, live your life the way you think is best. But don’t be surprised if in the years to come you start piling up more things in your ‘I wish I’d’ column than in your ‘Holy shit, I did that!?’ column.”
She had a point. I had wasted weeks stifling my feelings. Weeks I could have spent getting to know Jeffrey better, or more to the point, getting to know his body better. All because, what? I was afraid of what people would think.
“You’re right, Tam.”
“Darn tootin’ I’m right. So, what are you gonna do about it?”
“I’m cornering him in the break room just like her cornered me,” I said.
“Atta girl! Go get your man candy. I knew you had in it you.”
“Well, don’t think too highly of me. His contract ends today so I’m not really risking anything.”
It was Tammy’s turn to sigh into the phone. “Well, go get him anyway.”
I ended the call, woofed down the rest of my lunch and headed back to my floor, hoping I hadn’t already missed him. Mr. Reed’s office door was still closed when I came back so I knew Jeffrey was still here. After a few hours of keeping busy and trying not to think of all the ways I wanted to have him, I popped into the break room for my afternoon tea.
Just as I finished steeping, the door opened and the break room filled with that undeniable masculine scent. “Contract’s up,” I said, turning slowly to meet his gaze.
“It is,” Jeffrey said.
I stepped closer to him, putting myself in his space and all the weeks of bottled desire crashed down on me. Heart pounding, mouth-watering, and heavy tension building between my thighs, I was sure he’d lean down and kiss me. At least, that’s how I pictured this moment happening every night for that last few weeks.
Every shared, weighted glance, every seemingly casual touch across my desk had wound me up so tight, I’d been touching myself in bed with thoughts of this day, of this very moment. It took no time to get myself off those nights, not when I imagined Jeffrey doing the touching.
And yet, here I was, right in the middle of the moment I’d been masturbating to for weeks and not only did he not lean in to kiss me. He actually stepped away.
Undeterred, I closed the distance he’d put between us, effectively pinning him against the far wall. I looked up at him, bottom lip nearly quivering with need and adrenaline. “I believe you have a promise to keep.”
Hesitation passed through his clear blue eyes but only for a fraction of a moment. “I do, don’t I,” he said with a smile.
I smiled back, leaning up to finally kiss him.
Hands resting on my arms he leaned down. “If I start kissing you, Serene, I’ll never stop,” he whispered in my ear.
A shiver ran through my entire body at his words, the gruff, ragged texture of desire and masculinity shook me in a very delicious way.
I grabbed the back of his neck, holding him still and hovering right over my ear. “What do you propose then?” I breathed into his.
He groaned in my ear, sending another chill down to my toes. “Dinner. Tonight. Morini Ristorante.”
It wasn’t a question. It wasn’t a request. It was a statement and I had no problem obliging.
“Wear something amazing,” he paused a moment, then continued in an even rougher tone. “Without undergarments.”
My breath caught in my throat and nails dug into the back of his neck as the hormones coursing through me seemed to go straight to my head, making me a touch woozy.
He snaked a hand up my back and into the hair at the nape of my neck, holding it tight and close. He tilted my head and gooseflesh prickled across my skin at the sensation. “Have I made myself clear?” he rumbled in my ear.
“Yes.” The word heaved out of me like a sigh. Jeffrey Webb had made himself very clear.
The only question was, could I open up to him?
Chapter Fourteen
Jeffrey
“HOLY HELL,” I BREATHED when I caught sight of her standing there, scanning the restaurant. I didn’t raise my hand or get up to get her attention, instead, I took in my fill of her in that smoking hot dress. Her long legs and perfect hourglass figure would have made anything look good but that dress seemed to be made specifically for her. She looked like a dream, like a siren calling to me, like a fucking goddess that I wanted to defile.
The other reason I didn’t get up to greet her was the growing tightness in my pants. Despite jerking it in the shower right before I got ready, Serene still got me harder than a fucking teenager.
She caught sight of me, gave me a sexy smile and sauntered over. “Does the dress meet with your approval?” she asked as she seated herself.
I smiled. “It does providing you met the other specification.”
Serene pulled her bottom lip between her teeth, presumably to keep it from quivering in that astoundingly sexy way. “I have,” she whispered.
That’s it. I wasn’t getting up anytime soon. I groaned as my balls tightened. Just knowing she was bare under that gorgeous dress, and at my request had me at full mast. She reached across the linen tablecloth, putting her hands in mine. “I’ve been waiting for this night for weeks,” she said with low voice. We looked into each other’s eyes and time stopped. Nothing else existed, just the two of us, holding hands, eyes locked on each other as we reveled in the warm feeling of being together.
“Good evening. My name is Sofia and I’ll be taking care of you tonight.” The young server said with a slight accent. She was petite and attractive but she was doing a damn fine impression of a bull in a china shop with how effectively she trampled on the moment. “Allow me to tell you about our specials this evening.”
“In realtà mi piacerebbe ordinare,” Serene said in what sounded like perfect Italian.
The server nodded and pulled out her pad and pen. “Molto bene.”
Serene continued in Italian as the server scribbled away at her pad. After a few nods and a few more molto benes, the girl smiled at us and scurried off.
“Who are you?” I asked half joking. “Where did you learn Italian so well?”
“Italy,” she said simply and took a sip of water. I waited for her to continue as she sat the glass back down but she didn’t.
“What were you doing in Italy?” I asked. “Also, what did you order us?”
“Oh, I ordered two of the chef’s specialties and a bottle of sparkling wine.”
“Ah, good choice. I always try to order the thing the restaurant is known for, too. I never understood people who go to a steak house and order chicken. Now, tell more me about the Italy bit.”
Serene shuffled slightly in her seat and looked down at her place setting. The vibe I got wasn’t at all the same as before. It wasn’t the suspended feeling of fate locking our eyes together. It was more like in Aspen when she got cagey about us only being
a one time deal.
“What’s going on with you?” I asked gently.
“I’m private. I don’t like people knowing my secrets.”
That one stumped me. “Why did you order in Italian if you didn’t want me knowing?”
She sighed, looked at her lap for a moment, then began. “It’s very difficult for me - that is, I supposed I wanted you to—” the server with the worst timing in the fucking world came back to open the sparkling wine. She popped the cork expertly and poured the glasses, while I sat there impatiently waiting for her to finish. When she finally left, I gently invited Serene to continue. “What were you saying?”
Serene downed her sparkling wine and poured herself another. “Never mind, it’s nothing.”
“No, I’m not letting it go. If you really were trying to be as private as you say, you wouldn’t have let on that you know Italian at all. So what’s going on, Serene.” I sighed as she seemed to clam up right in front of me. I reached across the table, encircling her hand in mine. “You can trust me. Whatever it is, you can trust me.”
Serene took a shuddering breath. Then, in a tiny voice, she said, “I spent a summer there while in school and picked it up.”
“Okay, that wasn’t so hard, was it? Was it a work program? Or an exchange program?” She tightened up again, looking only at her lap.
“I can’t really say I understand this, Serene. You’re perfectly fine sleeping with me but you won’t tell me about yourself? What’s going on here?”
A pained expression crossed her features. “It’s just - it’s really hard for me to open up.”
I nodded but before I could reassure her, the server brought the goddamn salad. She asked about pepper and then if we wanted Parmesan and before she’d even walked away, Serene had a comically large mouthful of arugula jammed in her face. I laughed. I had to. Serene was so uncomfortable she’d rather cram food in her face than open up.
So, I decided I’d go first.
I told her my story in Macchu Picchu, about Natasha and how she made me a better person. Then I told her how I lost her and Serene’s eyes filled with tears.
“Don’t feel sorry for me. I stopped pitying myself long ago. Be happy for me. I had some of the happiest times in my life with Natasha. Be happy that she helped make me into the person you know now.” Serene nodded, blotting at her eyes with the back of her hand.
“It was five years ago when she died, and honestly I never thought I’d ever feel anything for another woman again.” I took Serene’s hand again. “But when I saw you on that shuttle, my whole world stopped. I knew I had to meet you. I promised myself I wouldn’t push it. That I wouldn’t try to meet you. I wasn’t entirely sure I was ready to open up again and I figured if the universe put us together, that must be a sign that I was, right? I know it sounds crazy and maybe it is. But here we are. So it must not be that crazy.”
I took a sip of water and shook off the emotions that talking about Natasha brought up. “That’s why I’m willing to give you space or time or whatever you need to feel comfortable enough to tell me about yourself. Because I needed the whole universe to cooperate to convince me.”
Chapter Fifteen
Serene
EVERY BIT OF ME WANTED to run. To bolt out of the restaurant and never look back. Hail a cab back to my awful apartment, change my number and bury myself in work. Then all my secrets would be safe and I’d be safe in my little bubble.
Safe but alone.
Why had I spoken Italian in front of him? I couldn’t blame on the Mediterranean ambiance taking me back to my summers there. This restaurant was about as authentic as you could get outside of Europe but I’d been here before and never felt compelled to speak in Italian to the servers. The only thing that was different was Jeffrey. Did I want him to know? Was a tiny part of me trying to break free of all the walls I’d built by dangling a thread he was bound to pull?
Did I actually want to open up to him?
I looked him in the eye. Those goddamn eyes that peered so deep into me it seemed he already knew everything about me. I looked at him and his sweet smile and played back his story in my mind.
He’d been through so much. He’d found and lost the love of his life. I was fired because people thought I’d bought my success. He’d felt the deepest pain there was. I’d gotten my feelings hurt over a rumor. My baggage was nothing compared to his, and yet he was more willing to open up than me.
It was absolute nonsense.
I straightened in my seat and lifted my chin. “I’m an heiress. My father is the English equivalent of Bill Gates. I spent summers in Italy and France and Morocco and The Netherlands because he owns houses there. I don’t tell people because I get treated differently. It got me fired from my last position.” I paused, trying to find the words for the question I’d always known I’d need to ask if I ever opened up and let someone in. The question I was so afraid of. “Does the fact that I have more money than you insult your ego in any way? If it does then let me know now. I’d rather not start something bound to end badly.”
Jeffrey took a moment which I appreciated. I’d rather him truly think it over now than discover it later. “No, it doesn’t. As long as you don’t expect me to quit the university and become a kept man,” he said with a grin.
I laughed. Very hard and very loud. So hard people looked over at us.
“Of course not,” I said when I’d gotten control of myself again.
“Good, cause I like teaching and I like my students.”
Sofia cleared our salad plates and brought out the pasta course. I’d ordered the four course Prix Fixe for us so we were only halfway done. Jeffrey pushed his fork around in his risotto like he’d never seen such a thing. “I should have asked what you liked before I ordered for you,” I said.
“Don’t worry, it’s definitely not you. It’s me. I’ve got the palate of a four-year-old.”
“Really? Why’s that?” I asked.
“I’m not a very adventurous guy,” he said as he pushed the risotto around some more.
“Well, risotto is just rice that’s been prepared so it has the texture of a sauced pasta. It’s delicious.” Then I leaned in, lowering my voice. “Besides, I’d say you’re a very adventurous guy especially when it comes to the bedroom.”
Jeffrey’s eyes flashed with a smile. “That completely different,” he said as he braved the foreign food and put a tiny bit in his mouth. “Oh, this is good,” he said and took another bite. “It’s creamy and buttery and kind of meaty.”
“Glad you like it,” I said and took a bite of my own pasta.
“You know, this is one of the things Natasha made me promise when she died,” Jeffrey pointed to his bowl and forked another bite.
“She made you promise to eat risotto?”
He smiled. “Kind of. She made me promise to keep trying new things. Things that were out of my comfort zone because she knew if it were up to me I’d stay in my cozy bubble and never leave it.”
I could relate. The reasons were different but the two of us built comfortable walls to hide behind. And now we were figuring out how to take them down, brick by brick.
I didn’t ask what else he’d promised her. I didn’t want to push. I figured he’d tell me when he was ready.
After we’d finished the pasta course, Jeffrey leaned back in his chair and patted his stomach. “That was excellent,” he said.
“I’m thrilled you liked it. They’ll give us a few minutes before bringing out the main course.”
He looked relieved. “Good. I need a few minutes.” He refilled our glasses and raised his. “To us,” he said. “I’m so glad we keep finding each other.”
I beamed at him as we clinked glasses and wondered how much longer the next two courses would take. I really wanted to get out of here.
Jeffrey downed his glass and leveled a serious gaze on me. “I do have something I need to tell you.”
“Okay,” I said suddenly very nervous.
“Re
ed wants to extend my contract. He wants me to oversee the...” He kept talking but all I could hear was my own heartbeat pounding in my ears.
I broke out in a cold sweat. I’d finally opened up to someone that I couldn’t actually have a relationship with, not if we were still working for the same company. Why would he agree to...why wouldn’t he tell me before...why would ask me to dinner if he knew? I was so upset my cheeks burned.
“Hey. Hey!” Jeffrey reached over and grabbed my hand, pulling me out of the negative spiral I was in. He looked at me, kindness and worry in his eyes. “I said I’d have to think about it. I was only telling you so you knew why Reed might be cranky tomorrow. I’m going to decline the offer.”
My breath caught in my throat as I sighed out a single word. “Really?”
Jeffrey smiled at me. “Really.”
“Let’s get the hell out of here.”
Chapter Sixteen
Jeffrey
GRABBING THE CHECK, after convincing the server that we didn’t want the rest of the courses, deciding who’s place we were going to and hailing a cab was all a blur of hormones and excitement. But as soon as we were in the cab, everything came into clear and sharp focus. Serene leaned against my shoulder as we headed to my place. I kissed the top of her head and slid my hand up her knee to her thigh, pushing up her dress as I did. I heard every hitched breath, every shuddering sigh as I gently pushed her knees apart and worked my way to the inside of her thigh.
The heat pouring off her delicious center reached my fingertips before I’d even touched her. She grabbed a fistful of my shirt, burying her face in my shoulder as I teased my way up to her soft, bare folds. I stroked her silky, slick lips and she shivered into me, groaning lightly.
God, this woman drove me wild. I wanted her now. I wanted to make her scream and thrash around in the back of this cab. But I didn’t want to get blacklisted by all the New York cab companies. I pulled away, letting my fingers linger on her flesh just a moment longer. She rocked into me, inviting me back to her smooth, wet center.
Christmas Crush (Holiday Studs Book 3) Page 6