by A. C. Arthur
“It’s all about priorities, Parker. I’ve been telling you that for years.”
Parker nodded. “Right, and showing up on time for any of mom’s functions is a very high priority.”
“It definitely is, especially since dad’s been acting kind of weird lately.”
That gave Parker pause. “What do you mean he’s been acting weird?”
“It may be nothing,” Savian began. “But it may be something. Dad’s stable, predictable even.”
“True,” Parker added wondering where all this was leading. He wasn’t really in the mood for another situation that would irritate him. But this was his father. Nothing else needed to be said. “What’s going on, Savian?”
His brother shrugged. “I don’t know. When he called me last night he sounded kind of distant. He asked if I’d seen Regan. Then he asked about Gavin and his family.”
“Why’s he asking you about Gavin’s family? I mean, I know that he knew Gavin’s father, but why not talk to Regan about her boyfriend?”
“That’s what I thought too. When I told him I didn’t know he made a point of telling me to make sure we’re all at the house this weekend. He even asked that I tell Regan to invite Gavin’s mother and sisters.”
Anthony Lucas, Gavin’s father, had been a decorated homicide detective before he’d been killed more than fifteen years ago. Parker had been close to his oldest daughter, Lydia. Well, they’d been more than close for about three months before they realized they liked being friends much more. There were two more sisters, Tess and Suzanna. Gavin was the only son and now he was Regan’s boyfriend, which meant that it seemed entirely logical that Reginald, who was a part of a family that was known for its loyalty and closeness to invite what may be their future in-laws to the annual Mother’s Day barbeque.
“Okay, so mom’s probably hearing wedding bells. You know how she is about Regan and wanting her to settle down and start a family. You may be seeing more into this than what’s really there,” he told Savian.
“You didn’t hear him,” his brother told him. “Besides that, when I called the house this morning mom said he’d already left. It wasn’t even eight o’clock yet.”
“Maybe he had an early meeting.”
“He didn’t come into the office at all today. I know because I called twice and finally his secretary Kate, told me she’d call me the minute he walked through the door.”
Savian, the one who never did this, looked worried.
“Probably out shopping for mom’s gift. You know he’s always trying to outdo whatever he brought her the year before.”
“Parker,” Savian said, the tone in his voice clear.
“Alright, look, maybe there’s something. But then again, maybe there’s not. It’s probably too soon for us to even be having this conversation. Let’s just see how this weekend goes. I’m sure it’s all about mom and making her happy and her wanting to plan Regan’s wedding almost more than she wants to breathe lately. There’s nothing wrong with dad,” he said finally, definitively.
There was nothing wrong with his father, nothing strange going on in that area because Reginald Donovan was steady as a rock. He was the head of their family, the man Parker looked up to and hoped to never disappoint. So no, there was nothing wrong with him, there just couldn’t be.
Chapter 4
He looked like an African American god, if there was such a thing. Leaning against the wall about ten feet from the door of her dressing room, his hands thrust in his front pant pockets. His suit was dark, the cream colored shirt he wore beneath his jacket gripping his chest like a second skin, displaying every undeniable ridge and contour of his excellently crafted physique. With milk chocolate toned skin and those dreamy eyes he had her immediate attention. But it was his mouth that reeled Adriana completely in—lips of a medium thickness surrounded by the low, precise cut of his goatee. She wanted to kiss him. Had wanted to since the first day he’d looked up at her after tossing his cell phone across the table.
And she’d cursed herself a fool every day since then.
Parker Donovan was not the kissing type. He was the ‘rip off your clothes, throw you down to the floor and take you to another stratosphere’ type. The kind that scared the hell out of Adriana, because once that memorable trip to sexual bliss was over and done with, so was he. Her sister Gabriella had told her more than enough stories about Parker and his many conquests over the last few years because that’s how Gabriella was, she made a point to know everything about everyone especially those that were considered famous. The Donovans were rich and famous and lord help her, too damned good looking for their own good. This one right here fit that description perfectly. He was smart too, he knew his business, what worked, what didn’t and how to get to the top. That, had been information Adriana had been given from a woman who probably knew Parker better than anyone else in this world—his ex-wife, Jaydon. With an inward sigh she let that thought trickle down like the proverbial cold shower. As if his rumored experience with women wasn’t convincing enough, he’d been married and divorced before he’d turned thirty.
Parker—or rather, fantasyland thoughts of him—were not what Adriana needed. Not at all. Still, she walked towards him, knowing he was standing there waiting for her. Of course she had no idea why. She’d thought they said all that needed to be said to each other last night. Taping had gone well all day and now it was almost eight and her stomach was churning painfully. No matter how hard she tried not to think about food, her body would not let it be forgotten. Neither could she forget about this man.
“Thought you were going to stand in that doorway for the rest of the night,” he said, the right corner of his mouth lifting in a smile.
That damned Parker Donovan smile.
Her stomach did something else at the sight, a little twist and tumble that she continued to assume was hunger.
“Was thinking about something,” she told him. “Besides, I wasn’t aware that we had a meeting.”
He hadn’t moved an inch, his stance so relaxed and casual and breathtakingly sexy she wanted to look away. She really did, but pride kept her gaze leveled on him.
“I had something to discuss with Giovanni, but it seems he’s already left for the evening. When I noticed how late it was and that you were still here, I figured I’d see if you wanted to get some dinner.”
Because she just did not have enough on her mind and standing in front of him feeling like a drooling teenager couldn’t possibly be more embarrassing, her stomach took the lead, answering his question with a loud, mortifying, rumble. Adriana opened her mouth to speak, her hand going instinctively to the noisemaker in question and heard him chuckle.
“Guess that’s a yes,” he said pushing himself from the wall and surprising her again by reaching for her hand.
The touch was gentle, his strong fingers against her wrist, spreading warmth from that spot up and throughout her arm. This feeling was new and took her by surprise, so much so that she faltered a bit, as if she actually meant to swoon over this man. That could also have been attributed to her lightheadedness, which was the excuse she’d rather believe. Adriana had been steadily convincing herself of that fact when he turned back to look at her.
“Hey, you alright?” he asked, concern filling those eyes as he stepped closer.
So close that she could smell his cologne as if he’d just sprayed it on. A great, masculine and sexy scent, by the way.
“I’m fine,” she replied quickly, slipping her hand from his grasp. “I, um, was going to have dinner alone.” He was looking at her strangely and it made her uncomfortable. Embarrassed, flustered and most importantly aroused. Adriana commanded herself to get it together.
She swallowed and thought of her options. One, she could continue to refuse this dinner invite which he would know was for some personal reason, since her stomach had taken the ‘I ate already’ excuse out of the equation. Or, she could act like any other sensible, single woman in this position and accept the fr
ee meal offer from the handsome Donovan.
“Adriana.”
He said her name, so normally, quietly, and still that warmth continued its trek throughout her body until it had pooled right between her legs. She blinked and wanted to sigh as defeat blanketed her, a feeling she usually hated, but this time… “I mean, that was my plan. But if you’re offering to buy dinner, that’ll work too.”
She smiled then, riding on the casual way she’d chosen to play this, hoping she sounded as carefree as she was attempting to be.
“That’s definitely not a problem, but you’re gonna have to walk to my car. Unless you want me to carry you, because I can definitely do that,” he said stepping even closer, invading every inch of her personal space.
He didn’t take her hand again. She’d started to prepare herself for that moment, the jolt she’d felt before, but it hadn’t happened and she wasn’t sure how she felt about that. Luckily she didn’t have time to overanalyze that the way she tended to do everything else because he had then stepped to her side, beginning a quick stride which solicited a double-step from her to catch up. He’d barely even looked over to her again before he’d begun talking, like he’d expected nothing less than for her to follow him. Of course he didn’t, he was Parker Donovan after all.
“So how did things go today?” he asked leading them casually down the long hallway towards the doors at the back of the lot. “Did you make it in on time?”
“Yes, that wasn’t a problem. I’m a morning person, waking up most times without the use of an alarm clock. I knew what time I needed to get up and moving so that wasn’t the issue,” she told him.
“But there was a problem today?”
They’d arrived at the exit and Parker had pushed the long bar to release the lock before holding the door open for her. She’d paused only slightly at his question, then replied while moving past him. “No problems at all.”
The spring air was cool, the sun just having set. However, the sky was still an array of fantastic orange and gold color, which did nothing to stop the timed flood lights edged along the roof of the building from switching on. She’d been thankful for those lights on more than one occasion.
“You can tell me if there’s anything going on with the taping,” he said after making sure the door closed completely. “Or with you and the show.”
“Oh no, there’s nothing going on with the show. The show is great,” she told him.
It was other aspects of her life that were the problem, but she was trying really hard not to go there. Instead, she looked around the lot, saw that most of the cars that were there when she’d arrived early this morning were already gone. Adriana knew from working on this lot for the last year that security here was no joke. There were cameras everywhere, and they all weren’t necessarily in plain sight. All of the doors locked immediately upon closing so that outside entry required keys or key codes. From the inside she figured there had to be some sort of monitoring so that anyone leaving was also being documented. And why had she been so intent on gathering all those security facts? Well, having her family targeted for a murderous take-over plot wasn’t something she’d forgotten, even though it had happened years ago. Besides, her sister-in-law, Bree, was an ex-Marine and private investigator. Bree and her twin brother Sam, were both experts in providing security. And as if that wasn’t enough, Bree’s older brother Cole was a homicide detective and his girlfriend, Loren, was an ex-FBI agent. Add all of that to Alex, Rico and her father’s over-protectiveness and she had no choice but to take her surroundings and her security seriously, at all times.
“I mean it,” Parker was saying as he’d begun walking once more, this time at a slower pace so she didn’t have to almost run after him. “If there’s ever any problem, all you have to do is call me.”
“There’s been no problem in the year since I’ve been here, so I think I’m alright in that regard. Besides, I try to take care of my own issues, especially when I’m at work.”
“Yeah, I get that. I’ve got a sister too,” he quipped. “And since I know you have two brothers, I won’t go into the speech about knowing when to tell your independent streak to take a vacation day and ask for help if you need it.”
“I don’t need help,” she snapped. It had been too quick, too cool, to go unnoticed.
Parker immediately looked down to her. Yes, even though she was tall, he was even taller, most likely somewhere in the six foot three or possibly even four feet. So when he’d turned slightly, his gaze had come down on her like a shadow and she’d immediately felt dwarfed.
“I mean, it’s been fine so far. Lori is great. She’s there at all the table reads and the rest of the cast are professionals. We have a lot of fun even though this is work. And I really like where the story is going this season. Viewers are going to love all the twists and turns.”
And she needed to shut up because she was rambling.
“Angling for a season three, huh? I don’t think that’s such a bad idea,” he said to her surprise.
Adriana had been certain he was about to go off into one of the speeches she’d definitely heard before from her brothers, and even Bree who checked in on her almost as much as the men in her family. In fact, she’d been fully prepared to go through the entire “I can take care of myself” diatribe she’d adopted over the years, with this guy that wasn’t related to and really had no reason to be this concerned with her outside of the business arena. Then again, she guessed she was sort of an asset to him right now, to the show she meant. She, meaning her character, was important to Indiscretions. Nothing personal, just business.
He stopped at a sleek gunmetal gray car, pressing the remote until the alarm disengaged with a beep, the sound of the locks severing causing another quick twist in her stomach.
“I drove my car to work this morning,” she told him.
Parker only nodded as he opened the passenger side door for her. “We’ll come back and get it after we eat.”
She nodded, slipping inside along the cool leather seats. Her seatbelt snapped in place, purse on the floor between her legs, Adriana had taken a couple deep breaths by the time Parker climbed into the driver’s seat and started the engine. The car was immediately in motion, swerving with way too much speed through the parking lot until slowing only slightly at the security window and pulling out onto the street.
When she put a hand to her chest to still the rapid beat of her heart, a chuckle bubbled up and she looked over to him.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Guess I should have warned you, I like to go fast,” he said with a wink of his eye and that smile that ran straight through her body, like an arrow slamming with decided accuracy into her center.
She’d shifted then, a little uncomfortable by the pulsating need his simple words had sparked. But when the light changed to green and he pulled off again, the smooth purr of the engine and the Miami scenery whisking past the windows, Adriana sat back against the seat and for the first time in a really long time, relaxed in the thought that he’d meant the car. He liked to drive the car fast. Nothing else. She hoped.
#
“You never told me why you wanted to switch from modeling into acting?” he asked after they’d been seated and had ordered their meal.
“You never asked.”
Her reply was quick and snappy, the way he was getting used to her being. It was a strange combination to the leery and sometimes sad look she would get in her eyes and that only intrigued Parker more. There was a mystery here, many layers to be peeled back before he would see the real Adriana Bennett. And he wanted to, see the real her, that is. He wanted that almost as much as he wanted to breathe in this wonderful ocean air as they sat at his favorite deck table.
The idea to bring her to Seawings Waterfront Bar & Grille located in downtown Miami, one of his favorite spots to eat and wind down, came spontaneously. It was a low-key place for Parker, where he could be comfortable and not worry about appearances and such. There hadn’t been any second guessing
that he would bring her there, regardless of the fact that she would be the first woman he ever shared this spot with.
Besides, this was just another impromptu item on his agenda today, since the meeting with Savian. Parker had come to the studio to meet with Giovanni, to get things straight with his moody director, but the guy had been gone by the time Parker arrived. His agitation towards the man who carried a reputation of being professional and had been working marvelously on the show up to this point, had not ebbed. Parker could have called his office for the guy’s home address and paid him a visit there, but he’d thought better of that approach. For now, he’d keep it professional…if and until Giovanni made him go the opposite route.
In the meantime, there had been no question that he would wait for Adriana, talk to her, spend as much time with her as he possibly could. When she’d stepped out of her dressing room wearing a simple—yet heart-stopping—purple sundress with thin straps at her shoulders and a full skirt dancing over her upper thigh, he’d known it would probably take something like a natural disaster to keep him away from her tonight. So he’d worked like hell to keep his hands buried in his pockets as she’d approached, and he’d offered her dinner, instead of a night in his bed, which was really what he’d craved.
“Okay,” he said with a nod, sitting back in the chair and watching with awe at the way the candlelight cast a golden haze over her perfectly smooth skin. “I’m asking now.”
The sky was full dark now, the waves from the ocean rising and crashing, a lullaby of background noise that Parker had loved to hear all his life. The salt-tinged air blew in a cool breeze causing the flames of the two votive candles in the center of the table to wobble and hesitate before standing tall and burning strongly once more. She used long fingers—no rings—to push her hair back, tucking the thick strands behind each ear.
“I was finished with modeling,” she replied and smiled up at the waitress when she appeared with their drinks.