Together they left the kitchen, each of them knowing the person on the other side of Jasmine’s apprehension was Luke Steele.
Chapter Two
“Thank you for coming.”
Luke wrapped his arms around Phoebe then released her.
“You know I wouldn’t have missed your important announcement. Seriously, you are so our next mayor.”
Luke’s smile warmed. “Thank you, I appreciate that.”
“You’re more than welcome. Anything you need, just let me know.”
“I will.”
Phoebe smiled then waved and turned to exit the front door. Behind her, Eden mimicked Phoebe’s farewell before parting in much the same manner. Luke’s gaze searched the room for Jasmine, but there was no sign of her long shapely legs or the tingling throaty voice Luke had come to love. He held on to the deep sigh that would reveal his frustration. Jasmine had avoided him all night, only getting close enough to stay within his sight but not within his reach. It was enough to drive a man crazy, and from the looks of it, she’d also left while he was preoccupied. Luke closed the door and strolled across the Mediterranean style dining room, down the two hardwood steps toward the balcony on the farther side of the room. He slid the door open and left it ajar, then made his way onto the stone veranda needing to get a breath of fresh air. Glancing up at the symphony of stars in the moonlit sky, Luke’s thoughts never strayed far from Jasmine.
The silence of the night surrounded him, and a current of wind flew over his skin just as a trail of chills assaulted his forearms.
“I thought you were gone,” his thick voice strummed.
“Without saying the proper goodbye?” Jasmine responded.
Luke grinned but kept his back to her and his sight before him.
“How did you know it was me anyway?” Jasmine asked.
“You don’t really need me to answer that, do you? You know I can feel you, right, Jasmine?”
The overactive flutter in her chest didn’t let up; it had been there all night, and now Luke was making it worse. It had taken all of her guts to seek him out, but she stood on the safe side of the door in a string of light that shone from his hallway ceiling. Though Luke was bathed in darkness, she could see the outline of his manly physique and the mountain that shaped his shoulders. Jasmine bit down on her lip and crossed the threshold, wanting to be near him but afraid of what might happen if she got too close. The one meager step brought her onto his territory but was far enough that it left her a quick exit.
“I’ve always thought this was a beautiful view,” she said, shifting the focus. “Even when I was a teenager, I’d stand here and see how many stars I could count.”
“And yet, you barely ever came out here.”
“That’s because you threatened to throw me over more times than I can count!” She laughed.
Luke chuckled. “But you knew I never would.”
Jasmine shrugged. “I didn’t know.”
“You didn’t know?”
“You were pretty convincing to me. I didn’t want to take any chances.”
Luke unfolded his arms then slipped his hands inside his pockets and turned around slowly to face Jasmine. “Are you ready to take your chances now?”
He’d done it again, altered the conversation altogether. Jasmine pretended not to notice. She lifted her brow. “On what?”
Luke stared at her intensely. “No,” he paused, “you’re not ready.”
A shiver slipped down her shoulders and treaded throughout her vertebrae. She licked her lips and sought for bravery.
“Maybe I am ready,” she said.
Luke stepped out of the shadows to stand in the glow of the hallway light that breached the stone veranda just by an inch. The edginess of his masculine face revealed a strict observation as he closed in on her. Jasmine held her footing, mentally challenging herself not to move away. After all, retreating had been her thing when it came to him, and Luke had been patiently awaiting her surrender. Luke looked her over, studying the swift movement of her orbs as she fought to hold his eye contact.
“Nah,” he said, “you’re not ready. Almost, but not quite. I consider myself a patient man. I’ll wait for you, and when the time comes,” he slipped a hand up her neck, placing a firm but soft caress aside her face, “you’re mine.”
Council Chambers City Hall
Chicago, Illinois
One week before Valentine’s Day
Jasmine sat with her legs crossed and her eyes obscured behind Dolce and Gabbana shades. For the last two hours, she had been held up at City Hall as the council members went on about budget and purchasing. Every few minutes, her thoughts would shift to Luke Steele. Since her friend had declared his announcement, his life had become a sprint as he campaigned heavily throughout Illinois. His pursuit to make a difference inspired her and shook up the activist within. It was one of the reasons Jasmine began attending city council meetings. It was essential to know exactly what their elected officials were concerned about and what was on their agenda.
That being the case, this period today felt like a waste. It wasn’t as if Jasmine’s time wasn’t precious. As the face of a popular daytime soap opera, Love Without Limits, and the many appearances she made throughout the week on talk shows, Jasmine had an extra tight schedule. Her many to-dos even made seeing Luke a thing of the past. Jasmine felt unnerved about that. It made her wonder if they would have the chance to fulfill this dream that she envisioned in her mind almost every night that passed since that moment he’d promised she would one day belong to him. But maybe that was exactly where the thought of her and Luke was meant to stay, in a dream. Even as the idea began to take residence, Jasmine simultaneously refuted it.
Seeing her sister Phoebe and her brother’s best friend Quentin get engaged renewed Jasmine’s hope. If her family had accepted their joining, they would receive her and Luke’s.
Feeling unsettled, Jasmine uncrossed her legs and stood. When she moved from her seat, five men in black tuxedos moved with her. In the past, being a triplet out of a celebrity household meant she and her sisters would always need security detail. However, add that in with her individual celebrity because of the soap opera and her constant appearances in the media when it was time to stand on the frontline and protest meant Jasmine’s detail had gotten heavier. The way she moved, one would think she was a part of a royal family or the presidency.
As she walked, her men made way for her as if they were composed of the same microorganism. Jasmine’s sharp heels clanked against the floor as they hustled outside, and the wind lifted the black strands of hair that lay over her shoulders. In a crème asymmetrical Burberry cape coat, complemented with well-tailored trousers, Jasmine strolled to the Bentley Mulsanne and slipped into the backseat as her chauffeur Jasper held open the back door.
She adjusted the sunglasses on her face and checked her wristwatch for the time. Three in the afternoon. Jasmine’s flight to Santa Monica was an hour and a half away. Not only that but today Luke would be in his old stomping grounds on the South Side of Chicago, announcing his plans for a community center development that was set to begin building the next day. It was one of the things he always wanted to do, and Jasmine was sad that she wouldn’t be able to attend.
She sighed and felt annoyed. Who said she had to go about life on schedules and appointments? That was no way to live; at least, not all the time. Jasmine dug a hand into her handbag and retrieved her cell phone. After dialing a few numbers, she held the device to her ear and waited for an answer.
“Yes, Monica, cancel my flight.”
Jasmine listened to her assistant’s response.
“I’m aware of that, now cancel the flight.” She paused again then smiled when Monica acquiesced. “Thank you.”
Jasmine’s line beeped.
“If you need anything, you know how to find me,” Jasmine added. She switched the line. “Hello.”
“Oh, good, I caught you before your flight.”
&nbs
p; It was Carla Jones, one of Jasmine’s close friends. As Jasmine’s brothers and even her father married, their family extended. Jasmine had found a friend in Carla, who she’d met through her in-laws.
The two hit it off instantly since Carla’s strong personality, and flirtatious ways matched Jasmine’s. They were practically the last ones in the bunch who’d yet to find their happily ever after, and they found themselves out on the town often.
“Sure did,” Jasmine replied. “What’s up, girl?” Jasmine relaxed against her seat and turned her eye to Chicago’s passing scenery.
“I’m planning a girls’ night out when you get back. Nothing major, just the spa, drinks, and dinner.”
“That sounds like an all-day shindig.”
Carla chuckled. “Well, it’s not like we see each other often.”
“Carla, I see you at least three weekends a month. Some months only have three weekends.”
“I see your point, but there are like thirty days in a month, so if you look at it like that, it’s not much.”
Jasmine chuckled as the Bentley turned another corner headed in the direction of the south.
“Well, I want to make this quick since you’re probably already at O’Hare.”
“I’m not going,” Jasmine quipped.
“Why, what happened?”
“I changed my mind.”
The phone quieted.
“Hello?” Jasmine said.
“What’s wrong, Jasmine?”
Jasmine smirked. “Why does something have to be wrong?”
“Because you wouldn’t change your mind for no reason.”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
Carla gaped on the other end of the phone. “Because you wouldn’t. Now what’s up?”
Jasmine half-rolled her eyes and licked the corners of her mouth.
“I’m going to support Luke.”
“At the grand opening?”
“It’s hardly a grand opening when the center hasn’t been built yet.”
When Carla spoke again, there was a smile in her voice. “All right then,” she said. “It’s about damn time.”
“Excuse you?”
“Girl, with the way you were moving, I thought the tortoise might beat you to the end of that race.”
Jasmine’s eyes rolled upward as she broke down Carla’s analogy.
“What are you trying to say, Miss Carla Jones?”
“Oh no you didn’t, I’m not that much older than you. Don’t start with me.”
Jasmine snickered. “Girl, I’ll be twenty-six soon, and you’re like thirty-six or something?”
“I know you didn’t just come for me,” Carla said.
Jasmine laughed out loud. Carla was so dead serious and seconds away from popping off.
“I’m just kidding, don’t go all, ‘for your information’ on me. I can hear it coming a mile away.”
“That’s not all coming if you keep that up.”
Jasmine guffawed.
“And since you want to go there—”
“Oh my God, Carla, I said I was just kidding.”
“Oh no, heffa, you don’t get to say what you want and expect me not to respond, kidding or not.”
Jasmine continued to laugh but didn’t miss the noticeable change of the neighborhood the deeper they ventured into the south.
“So, since you went there, thirty is not old. It’s prime real estate, you ol’ teenybopper.”
Jasmine fell to the side laughing, and it, in turn, made Carla smile.
“Heffa,” Carla added for good measure.
“Okay, okay, geez!”
“Mmhmm, anyway, I’m not letting you distract me from the fact that you’re finally blowing off one of those talk shows to go spend time with your boo.” Now Carla’s smile was full on. “What made you do it?”
Jasmine readjusted herself in the heated seat and let out a sigh. “I’m just tired of avoiding it, you know? It’s a real job and considering all of the other hats I wear, this one should be simple.”
“Yes, girl, you are so right. Now keep that in mind when you think about changing it.”
Jasmine nodded even though Carla couldn’t see her. She didn’t want her friend to know her stomach was in knots. The last few weeks, Luke had been spotted with a beautiful brunette at his side. Jasmine learned later the woman in question was Sarah Middleton, one of the volunteers working with Luke’s campaign. In public, Jasmine was good at putting up a front. She could pretend with the best of them that it didn’t bother her to see the woman hanging on to Luke’s every word like he was Jesus speaking on the Mount of Olives. But Jasmine knew better; she could tell Sarah was the type to go after what she wanted, and it was Luke in her eyesight.
The Bentley drove into a newly furnished lot and parked, then Jasper exited and rounded to the passenger back side door. The wind sailed through the vehicle when the door opened, and without contemplation, Jasmine slipped out.
“I hate to cut and run,” Jasmine said to Carla, “but I’m here.”
“Call me back if you leave by yourself.”
Jasmine squinted. “If I leave by myself?”
“That’s what I said.”
Jasmine smirked. If only she had the confidence that Carla seemed to have.
They hung up, and Jasmine slipped the phone back into the oversized handbag that hung off her arm, then gained her courage and moved forward.
Chapter Three
Jasmine glanced around, seeing an entourage of people standing in the field just ahead. Camera crews were scattered about, along with a large audience of citizens who listened on as Luke spoke. A small smile teased the corners of Jasmine’s lips, and her feet moved in his direction.
Her initial approach was to linger off to the side until he finished, but she wanted to get a full view of him. Jasmine needed to know that the connection they had was still there and not just an old flame that had slowly burned out.
To her side, Jasmine’s security made room for her to pass discreetly so as not to disturb his speech. The crowd shifted, and with it, Jasmine slinked past the last onlooker who obstructed her line of sight.
Seeing him in his element for the first time in weeks, Jasmine released a long, substantial breath. Her eyes toured his macho physique, covering the bulk in his toned arms and rugged shoulders. His strong neckline mounted like a stalk, and the muscular angle of his jawline was shadowed by his well-groomed beard. She released another slow breath as if seeing him heightened the adrenaline in her body. She touched her throat softly when her pulse accelerated, finding its rhythm dancing to an upbeat tempo. As his lips moved, she watched the full advancement of his mouth causing Jasmine to swipe her tongue across the plump softness of her own. Luke was encased in a sharp white button-down shirt with a navy-blue tie fastened around the collar that was custom fitted to the thick column of his neckline and monumental frame.
Jasmine marveled at the complementary way his shirt tucked into his suit pants that rode his athletic thighs down to assemble at his navy-blue wingtip shoes. She inhaled and released a languid sigh just as a flurry of wind sailed past her carrying a scent of fresh cut grass across her nose. In front of Luke, a shovel stood upright in the grass, and Jasmine was taken from her trance long enough to hear his next words.
“It is my honor to begin the construction of the foundation that will become our south-side community home, and it pleases me to have you all here to witness this special occasion.”
His powerful hand reached for the shovel, and he lifted it, fitting it between both outstretched palms. Taking a step back, Luke sent the blade sifting into the ground, causing a pile of green grass and dirt to upheave on the tool’s tongue. His muscles flexed through the crisp fitted shirt, and his chest bulged as if he would break free of the material like the Incredible Hulk. Jasmine took in another bustling breath and didn’t expect it when Luke paused and glanced up as if sensing her near. His gaze began at her feet and rose up Jasmine’s legs to her thighs, puncturing her sk
in as if she stood there exposed in her bare necessities. When he passed her center, heat ballooned between her thighs, and slow moisture trickled from her vagina to the seat of her panties. Her body vibrated as his poignant stare blazed up her belly past her now hardened nipples toward the curve of her upturned chin to her pretty brown eyes.
There she was trapped, absorbed in his hazel brown gaze and fiery assessment. From the short distance, Jasmine saw his orbs darken, and his eyes turn into a devilish gleam as his mouth lifted into a robust masculine smile. It took her breath away. Besides coming to support a friend, this was also what she’d come for. It was still there; their connection had not slowly burned away. It was as meticulously potent now as it had been that night on his stone veranda. The night she’d run away from him, the night she’d almost given in to her innermost desires.
Jasmine licked her mouth again, needing to wet her lips. The move didn’t disturb the ruby red lipstick on her perfectly posh mouth, but from the few feet in front of her, it did disorient Luke. He’d felt her as soon as she arrived but kept his focus in case he only imagined her presence. Besides, the last few months had been hard on him. Their limited conversations weren’t enough to fill the hunger he craved in the depths of his heart and the lowest part of his abdomen. Friendly chats of “how are you” and “I’m proud of you” were great, but whenever he turned the conversation to a personal one, she would clam up.
Luke had thought with Quentin and Phoebe getting engaged that surely Jasmine would come around. But it only seemed to distance her more, and he couldn’t quite figure out why although the little voice in the back of his head told him he did know. Though Luke was a patient man, there was a herculean side of him that wanted to hold her hostage for as long as possible and make her love him. But he would never do something so cynical as that. Luke wanted Jasmine to come to him on her own accord, and here she was in the flesh. The time was nigh, and he wasn’t letting her wriggle away from him again.
The crowd waited for Luke to continue, but instead, Luke straightened his posture and spoke to the cameras as he kept his attention on Jasmine.
Tempted By You Page 2