Greg felt himself smiling at her and ended up laughing when the most graceful woman he knew stumbled into him. He was asking for a lot more than just a date, and on some level, he figured Jellica was aware of what his offer meant.
But he’d give her plenty of time to figure it out for herself. He wasn’t in a hurry. He just wanted to make sure she wasn’t clueless about how he felt.
By breakfast, Greg hoped a lot of things were going to be clearer to both of them.
Chapter Fourteen
“I can’t decide which I want next,” Jellica said, staring longingly at the cartons on her patio table.
Greg’s empty spoon circled all three. “I bought a variety so you wouldn’t have to decide. Have more of each. These are all my favorites. I’m happy to share them with someone who appreciates great ice cream. Who knew we had this in common?”
Jellica shrugged. “Ice cream’s always been one of my favorite desserts. Hard to believe this great version has existed so close to my house all these years without me knowing about it. Next time I get together with my friends, and it’s my turn to supply our treat, I’m bringing this. I bet Trudy will want to start serving it at her restaurants once she gets a taste.”
“Nothing would thrill my client more than to get her ice cream into the mouths of Chef Baker and Chef Dozen. That would be a great boost for her business. Her husband died from a heart attack almost a decade ago and she was left needing to work to survive. She was fifty-two when she opened the shop with what was left of the life insurance.”
“One of your clients owns that amazing ice cream shop?”
“Uh… huh. Olivia is a great lady. You’d really like her,” Greg said around another mouthful. “Personally, I think the chocolate mint pairs perfectly with Stanley’s Cincinnati dog. What do you think?”
Jellica dug into the carton again. She let it melt against her tongue. “Agreed. But the cherry chocolate one is heavenly. Are all the flavors as good as these three?”
Greg set down his spoon. “All the ones I’ve tried. I come to your side of town to visit several clients. Mom expects me to pick this ice cream up for her every time I pass through.”
Jellica nodded. Thinking of Eleanor made her a little sad. “Can I ask what happened to your parents?”
Greg lifted a shoulder. “Dad’s death really rocked her world. After my father died, my mother closed up to all real living. Brittany drags her out of the house a couple times a week, but we can both tell she’s not happy to be going. It’s like she lacks a purpose worthy enough to get out of bed in the morning. She’s still a senior partner in the law firm she started, but she never goes in to work anymore. Her fleet of lawyers keep on making her money, but she’s little more than a figurehead now.”
Jellica set down her spoon. “If I eat another bite, I’m going to have to change clothes.” She looked at Greg. “Your mother seems like a very nice person.”
Greg chuckled and shook his head. “No… nice is not the right word for her, but she’s mostly a good person. Just don’t mess with someone she cares about. Talk about lethal… that perfectly describes my mother when she’s in protective mode.”
“I believe you because I saw that side of her firsthand.” Jellica leaned on the table and put her chin against her fist. “I’m also thinking the same thing might be true about her son. He seems to be making everyone in both our lives extremely nervous with his efforts to help me. I’m starting to wonder just how nice he is… or isn’t. My track record with men isn’t any better than yours is with women. We seem to be two of a kind in some odd, yet fated kind of way. What?” His smile scrambled the nerve endings on the back of her eyeballs. “Should I worry that you’re smiling at me every five minutes tonight? ”
Greg capped the ice cream cartons and handed them to her. “Here. Hold these for me. I’m trusting you with the rest of my ice cream treasure. We’ll finish them tomorrow sometime.”
“Is that any way for a nice guy to act?” She giggled when Greg gathered their spoons up in one hand and pulled her up by the elbow with his other while she madly juggled the three half-empty containers.
Before she could take a step in the direction he was dragging her, his cool lips were sliding over hers, confident and sure of what they were doing. He tasted sure of himself. Whatever the change was, most of her was in complete agreement with whatever he’d decided that had him kissing her that way.
But there was a tiny, niggling part of her brain that wondered what kind of man she was about to get involved with this time. More nerve-wracking was the knowledge that Greg wasn’t going to disappear the next day like the co-pilot on layover. No, Greg was going to be in her dining room until he’d done whatever he intended to do.
At the moment though, what Greg intended to do seemed to be her as soon she’d let him. She could feel the moment of truth between them coming even though her decision making hadn’t quite caught up with his.
“I can be as nice as you want me to be… or not nice at all,” Greg whispered as he stopped her in front of the refrigerator while he moved to the dishwasher to deposit their spoons in it.
As flirting went, it was a tired line, but Greg was obviously trying to warn her of his sexual intentions. Maybe she should be disappointed that he’d felt a need to announce it first, but mostly she could feel excitement building because he wanted her.
“How am I supposed to pick between the man with the dangerous smile and the nice guy who cooked dinner for my sons?” Jellica asked.
Greg laughed at her question as he started walking back to where she stood. “I would never expect you to pick until you’d sampled everything I’m offering. We’d best get started tonight though. Two little birds told me you take a long time to make decisions.”
Jellica drew in a breath as her head popped out of the freezer compartment to glare. “I do not take too long to decide things. In fact, I’m a very decisive person. Did my sons tell you that about me? I swear those two are the most impatient creatures on earth.”
Greg closed the freezer compartment for her and pressed against her body until her back was against the whole refrigerator. “My man card is at risk here,” he whispered against her mouth. “That means you have to forgive my teasing and forget I told you what they said.”
“I don’t know if I can do that. I’ll have to think about it—I mean…” Her eyes narrowed more than they already had when the man in her arms belly laughed against her while she quietly fumed.
Greg nipping her bottom lip ended her curiosity about her sons telling unfair stories about her character. His now open seduction had her thinking of other far more important things like kissing him back until her world tipped on its axis and started spinning wildly out of control.
His tongue slipping into her mouth to explore was heady and more decadent than the expensive ice cream he’d bought for her that evening. What surfaced through the building lust was the astounding discovery that Greg could really kiss well when he put his mind to it. She suddenly wondered how many other women had learned that particular secret. Her jealousy had her shaking her head to rid herself of such unworthy thoughts.
“So tell me, Ms. Yoga Teacher, just how flexible are you?” Greg asked in a whisper.
His masculine chuckle when she slid her leg up his body and put her ankle on his shoulder was priceless. So was the higher level of sexual arousal Greg effortlessly created by kissing her ankle with reverence while he ran a slightly damp palm down the outside of her thigh to her hip.
“Want to test a theory with me?” he asked between choppy breaths.
“What theory would that be?” Jellica asked breathlessly back, easing her leg back down.
“To see whether it’s true or not that a good guy can come out on top. You see, I’m betting you’re going to want a lot more than friendship from me come morning. That’s not innuendo. That’s me warning you.”
His laughter over her in-drawn breath of surprise as he lifted her by the hips and wrapped both her very
flexible legs tightly around his waist was the only real indication of his sexuality he’d ever given her. Conservative the man might be, but she’d been way, way off the mark in thinking she knew any of Greg Skyler’s secrets.
No. He was not like any man she’d ever known. Jellica had the distinct feeling as her accountant with the lethal smile carried her off to her own bed without a qualm, that she was about to find out everything any woman had ever wanted to know.
And she still wasn’t sure how she felt about him.
Loving a man had wrecked havoc on her life not so long ago and had left her caring for her children alone. No amount of resistance had altered that fate or changed her ex-husband’s mind about leaving. In the six years since she’d been on her own, she’d been sorely afraid of having to one day endure such pain again.
Fear kept her heart hidden away… until today.
Now change was sweeping through her life in the form of Greg Skylar. He was carrying her to bed and she wanted him too regardless of any additional problems loving him might cause in her life. Resisting him was futile. She felt that knowledge in her bones… and in every muscle of her body as Greg’s hands praised every inch he explored.
He kissed her until she melted beneath him and forgot her concerns. And she could only be grateful that he was such a wonderful distraction.
Maybe she’d write that modern karma sutra guide after all. She’d decide tomorrow.
“Jellica, wake up, honey. Open your eyes. Man, you’re hard to wake up in the morning.”
“What?” Jellica rolled over in bed and eyed the man who’d kept her up most of the night. “You can’t expect me to get up early when you haven’t let me sleep more than two hours.”
Greg laughed and zipped his pants. He felt his face flushing and rightly so. “Sorry. Guess I was making up for lost time. I’d have let you sleep in, but I have to leave. No way in hell was I leaving without saying goodbye. I have my good guy standing to protect.”
“Some good guy,” Jellica complained. She pulled the sheet up over her naked breasts and leaned on one elbow. “Okay, I’m up. What’s going on?”
Greg sat gingerly on the side of the bed. “Not a morning person?” he asked.
She reached out and pinched his arm until he yelped. “I am a morning person when morning comes after a night of sufficient rest. Not that I’m not incredibly grateful for what you did to me all night long, but I need about six hours more sleep to recover, Mr. Perky Pants.”
Greg chuckled and rubbed the place on his arm that she’d pinched. “Sorry.”
“Sorry,” Jellica mocked. “You’re not sorry. You’re smiling. You’re not sorry at all.”
“I am?” Greg touched his mouth and felt his lips spreading wider. He laughed at not having known. “You’re right. I’m not sorry. Guilty as charged.”
“Don’t be—that would be more insulting,” Jellica said, letting her arm slide out until her head hit the pillow once more. “I need more sleep. Let’s get this talking over with. Where are you off to in such a hurry?”
“Uh… work. I have to go to work,” Greg said, not ready to share the details yet.
“It’s Saturday, Greg. Do you always work on Saturdays?”
“Only when I forget to check my messages from Friday night and find out I got an emergency notification. My life is full of distractions lately so I keep messing up. You see, I had this hot date last night… boy, was she hot. You should see this woman,” Greg bragged.
Jellica reached out to pinch him again, but a laughing Greg stood to escape her. She was pouting, but couldn’t seem to help it. She did not handle disappointment well. “So when are you coming back, Mr. Wham-Bam-Thank-You-Ma’am?”
“Mr. what?” Greg asked, chuckling at her complaining.
“You heard me. My sheets still smell like your cologne and yet you’re already zipping up your pants. What else would you call your actions last night and your hasty exit this morning?”
“Just something at my work that can’t wait. Trust me, Jellica, I’ll be back as fast as I can. I promise. Save me some ice cream.”
He left her bedroom door open so she heard the loud click of the front door as Greg closed and locked it behind him.
Jellica pulled the pillow that Greg had slept on over her face and wondered how in the world she’d managed to sleep with yet another man who found his work more thrilling than sex with her. Was she really that naïve about males?
Greg had been all up in her business and her life until he’d nailed her. He was obviously a catch and release kind of guy—when he wasn’t hiding out in his nerd clothes and pretending to be a poor, misunderstood bachelor. The big rat fink faker had muscles of steel and the libido of a twenty-year-old.
Having worked herself into a good froth, Jellica couldn’t stop dwelling on Greg’s hasty departure after their incredible night together. Maybe she wasn’t as good in bed as she thought she was. Would she even know if she was bad? A man’s body always got there. A woman’s body was not so reliable though Greg hadn’t struggled all that much to get her to the peak whenever he wanted.
Of all the men she’d known biblically—all four or five of them—Martin was the only one who’d ever critiqued her between the sheets performance. The co-pilot she’d slept with two years ago had set her straight about her skills being sufficient, or so she’d believed at the time. But hadn’t he also flown off into the wild blue yonder never to be heard from again?
It was very true that actions spoke louder than words.
Hurrying away to his work emergency, Greg hadn’t justified leaving in any way that made sense to her… and now she was left wondering what went wrong between them. She’d been planning to make him breakfast after she’d grabbed a couple more hours of sleep. She was planning to be all clingy and girly and see if she got lucky again.
Well, waking her up before he left did not entitle Greg to a repeat of last night. That was for certain. The man had better not be thinking that. And she’d eat all his incredible ice cream for breakfast if she wanted. See how he liked her selfish side.
“Stupid. Stupid. Stupid woman,” Jellica chanted through the pillowcase that still smelled of sandalwood. She pulled it off her face so she could breathe without Greg Skyler being part of her every breath. “Modern Woman’s Guide to the Kama Sutra—my ass, Georgia. How about Zen in the Art of Not Dating Jerks? Now that would be a great book for me to write.”
“You’ve worked yourself into a tizzy over nothing. He’s coming back. He said so,” Ann said.
Jellica snorted at her friend’s positivity. “Cal came back but Greg is not coming back. I got a text just before you all got here. His work emergency is taking longer than he planned. Yeah… sure it is.”
Trudy looked up from the fifth carton of ice cream she’d sampled. “This is the best ice cream I’ve ever tasted. Every flavor is good. How does she do this?”
Jellica nodded. “I knew you’d think it was great which is why I went and got more. Pick a couple and take them home to Jack. The woman started her ice cream business when her husband died. Greg helped with her life insurance and helped her invest some into the business. Now that’s a success story. Plus, I envy her creativity. I wish I’d come up with something so great.”
“Maybe Greg’s good at business and lousy at love. Some men just aren’t good at showing how much they care. Ted was lousy at it. We’d have these giant fights over his insensitivity to leaving me while he went off and risked his life for his country. It was for a good cause, but he could have at least pretended not to be so damn happy to be leaving me alone with three children to care for by myself,” Georgia recounted bitterly.
Jellica nodded in sympathy. “I hear you, but the million-dollar question is did Ted leave you alone immediately after the first time you slept with him?”
“No,” Georgia admitted. “He didn’t. Neither did Hollywood.”
“Then either Greg’s an ass who isn’t as serious as he pretends or I’m boring as hell in b
ed. I’m going with the former today because I’m not ready to blame myself yet.”
“Good girl,” Ann praised, reaching out to rub Jellica’s shoulder.
Trudy sighed and put down her spoon. “I was trying not to tell you because it’s not my place to tell you, but Brandon’s helping him so…”
Jellica glared. “Brandon’s helping who?”
Trudy sighed again. “Brandon is helping Greg go through your paperwork from when your parents died. They’re both obsessed with the puzzle not fitting together.”
“Puzzle?” Jellica slapped her hands on her kitchen counter. She was already angry that her dining room table had been confiscated for Greg’s puzzle project, but this was too much. It was her life after all. She wished now she’d never given him permission to go through it. “Is some financial puzzle of my awful past more important than the fact that the man kept me up all freaking night making love to me? I don’t think so, ladies. I don’t think so.”
“All night?” Georgia asked, her mouth twitching. “Methinks the yoga lady doth exaggerate.”
“No, she doth not—I mean, I am not—damn you, Georgia,” Jellica said bitterly. “It was all night. Greg has a lot of staying power. I don’t understand how he’s made that way, but he is. I’m still grumpy from lack of sleep… and I can barely walk. He’s hiding granite under those ugly clothes of his. He said he was making up for lost time when he apologized.”
When Ann covered her mouth and laughed behind her hand, Jellica glared at her. “Stop laughing. This is not funny. Is there something about me that makes guys want to run away the morning after? I had a decade with Martin so I thought he’d just gotten bored with me in bed, but Greg barely knows me. He’s the boring one between the two of us. Right?”
“Sweetie…” Trudy began.
Jellica swung on her. “Don’t ‘Sweetie’ me, Momma Trudy.”
“But Greg is…”
Jellica pointed at the woman who was like a mother to her. “If the next words you say aren’t going to be that Greg’s an ass for what he did, then just pack up two cartons of that incredible ice cream and go home.”
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