“Ideally, I’d like something that is on a hill and that overlooks the water. I don’t want to be right on the water, but higher up so that I can see it in the distance.”
She smiled, immediately understanding. “Away from the traffic and the tourists?”
“Exactly,” he agreed, impressed that she instantly appreciated his vision. “What’s available?”
Naya’s sexy tongue stuck out between her lush, red lips and he almost groaned at the picture she presented. “I don’t normally deal with land properties, but there were some that stuck out when I flipped through the listings last week.”
She walked over to her computer.
“You don’t have other things to do today?” he asked.
She shook her head. “I sent out all the information to my clients last night around two o’clock,” she explained as her fingers flew over the keyboard, completely unaware of what she’d just revealed to him.
“I’ll make some breakfast while you search,” he said, but didn’t move for several moments, enjoying the way her body looked. Her desk was placed near a window so the sunshine streamed in, making her hair shine with glints of fire and light. The sun made the red in her hair look like it was on fire and he loved her pale skin. He imagined her skin turning pink when she blushed. All over!
Damn, he had to stop thoughts like that forming in his mind. It didn’t suit his purposes at the moment. He had to get her talking. The more he understood Naya, the faster he could figure out how to get her into bed.
Well, it wasn’t just his bed he wanted her in. He’d suspected last night around three-ish that he wanted Naya forever. Gone were his assertions that he wasn’t a “forever” kind of guy. Naya had changed all of that. He wanted her to build the house with him, to give her preferences so that, once he had his wedding ring on her lovely finger, he could carry her luscious body over the threshold and start making love to her in every room possible. And he wanted a house with lots of rooms!
Pulling his eyes away from her adorable bottom, he forced his feet to take him into the kitchen. Food. She needed something to eat. She hadn’t eaten anything at the event last night and he still wasn’t sure why she’d continuously said the word “broccoli”, but she hadn’t eaten any of the broccoli salad that had been on the buffet table. It had been delicious, he knew, since he’d eaten it himself.
“You don’t have any food, Naya,” he called out after opening her refrigerator. There were a couple of containers of yogurt and lettuce, a sad looking tomato, and an enormous head of broccoli. The lettuce and tomato looked as if it had been used. But the broccoli was still whole, untouched.
“There’s food in there,” she called back, but he could hear the distracted tone in her voice.
“What’s up with the broccoli?” he asked.
There was a pause and he could picture her cute, button nose squinching up in disgust. Finally, he heard her say, “It’s good for me.”
He looked back at her, her fingers still tapping on the keys as she skimmed through information.
“I’m going to run out and get some food. There’s nothing in your house, Naya.”
She nodded her head, but he suspected that she hadn’t really heard him.
He grabbed his keys, pressed a kiss to the top of her head because he couldn’t stop himself, and walked out.
A half hour later, he had six bags of groceries and he was carrying them into the house. When he glanced through the kitchen to her desk, he realized she’d barely moved except for her fingers. And she had a stack of papers on her printer. Obviously, she was printing out site information.
Good, they could discuss what she’d found over breakfast.
He cracked eggs, grated cheese, and sliced up ham and vegetables. After sliding a pan of muffins into the oven, he whipped up the omelets, adding extra everything and then slid them onto plates when they were perfectly cooked.
At the same moment, the timer to the oven indicated that the muffins were finished. He tossed the dishtowel over his shoulder and set the table, then moved over to her computer. “Breakfast is ready,” and he pressed the button on the monitor.
“Wait!”
“Nope. Everything is hot and ready to eat.” He grabbed the papers on the printer and took her hand, leading her over to the table. “Talk to me. Tell me what you’ve found.”
Naya looked down at the table and was amazed at all the food. “This looks amazing,” she gasped. “Where did all of this come from?”
“Sit,” he commanded, not sure if he was amused or insulted that she hadn’t realized he was gone. “Eat.”
He poured her more coffee and then sat down across from her. “What do you think?” he asked after she’d taken the first bite.
“It’s amazing! You’re an incredible cook!” She took another bite and closed her eyes, savoring the garlic and cheesy eggs. “This is wonderful!
“Good. I’m glad you like it.”
“I might just have to hire you permanently.”
His eyes lit up with that dangerous fire and she stammered, trying to back track. “I mean…”
“Don’t back down now. You’re in trouble, because I’m ready to be hired.”
Naya’s mouth fell open because she could easily picture Luke here, in her house. Or somewhere, cooking for her, making her laugh and enjoying her company.
Dangerous image, she told herself and looked down at her eggs. “I found about ten different pieces of land for sale that might meet your requirements. Although, until you tell me more about what you want, I can’t narrow it down further.”
He nodded his head, wishing he could have explored her startled expression more thoroughly. But she’d shut down quickly and tightly, so he tried to respect her need to move on. “I don’t know all of my needs either. And maybe something would be what I want in my mind now, but Logan could find some reason that my house wouldn’t work on a specific property.”
She nodded her head. “He’s the architect, right?”
“Exactly. And my twin. Zeke is the oldest and Teague is right behind him. Logan and I are the babies.”
Naya looked at Luke’s enormous body, broad shoulders and all of those muscles her fingers had discovered. She knew that there was nothing baby-ish about the man. “What was it like being a twin?” she asked despite her admonition to keep things professional. She was just too curious about the man.
“It wasn’t easy,” he said and she saw the teasing look in his eyes. “Logan is a pretty serious guy. It was hard to get him to put down the slide ruler and come out and have some fun.”
Naya didn’t believe him for a moment. “Logan doesn’t look like the kind of guy who stays inside doing math problems all the time.”
Luke shrugged one of his equally muscled shoulders. “His bulk is all because of my diligence.”
She rolled her eyes. “And possibly an athletic genetic makeup?”
He waved his fork in the air, dismissing that possibility. “A minor detail.”
She laughed, delighted with him today. Besides the moment when he’d first stepped into her tiny house, there had been no intensive, sexually explosive moments.
“So, what are your parents like?” she asked, wanting to know more despite her vow to not ask anything about his family.
“They are great,” he beamed. “I think they’re in France right now. But I’m not exactly sure. They take a long trip every few months. My dad worked so much when we were kids. Not to mention, it was hard to travel with four energetic boys, so my dad is spoiling my mom now, traveling wherever she wants to go and doing it in style.”
“Of course,” she smirked. “Is there any other way with the Steele family?”
“Absolutely not. What about you?”
“What about me?” she asked, suddenly very interested in cutting her omelet into precise, bite-sized pieces.
“What are your parents like?”
“Divorced.”
“Ouch! Was that hard?”
N
aya shook her head. “No. It was hard when they were married. It was better after they divorced.”
“How so?”
She shook her head, not wanting to discuss her childhood or her parents’ vicious marriage. Or, more specifically, her parents’ vicious divorce and the horrible things they would say and do to each other for years after their marriage was finally dissolved. “I was fine. Perfect childhood, no worries. I think you should look at this site first. It has the best views from what I could see, has easy street access, but isn’t off of a main road so you won’t have traffic problems.”
Luke suspected that there was a story behind her avoidance. He decided to let the subject of her parents go for now, but he’d definitely return to it. More subtly though.
Looking at the picture on the paper, he nodded, accepting her advice. “We can do that.” And he looked down at the details below the picture. He was surprised that it really was a good piece of land. “What else?”
Naya was relieved when they stayed on the subject of business for the rest of the meal. Business she could handle, personal stuff, not so much.
A half hour later, he wiped his mouth on a napkin and nodded his head. “These all look great. Let’s go,” he said and stood up, taking both of their plates over to the sink.
She stared up at him, not sure what he meant. Go? Go look at the sites? “What? Now?”
He looked down at her. “Sure. Why not?”
She stammered, not sure why but she had to come up with a good reason. She wasn’t mentally prepared to spend the day with Luke. He took a bit of bracing to deal with, especially if she was going to be in a small car with him. Oh no, that can’t happen!
He was already rinsing off the plates and putting them into the dishwasher. “I normally don’t use the dishwasher,” she told him, feeling stupid for even saying that.
“Why not?” he asked as he continued to load everything up.
“Because I don’t have enough to fill it,” she said, then glanced down. With all of the bowls and utensils, cutting boards and pans he’d used, the machine was more than half full.
“You don’t normally cook, I take it?” he asked and moved closer. He wanted to reach out and touch her, so instead, he stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jeans.
“No. Normally, I just grab a microwave meal.”
“I like to cook, but I don’t do it often with just myself. When I get together with my family, there’s a lot of food and I go a bit crazy. Big appetites with my brothers.”
She laughed. “I can imagine.”
“So, are you ready to go?” he asked.
She looked up at him, then down at her feet that still didn’t have shoes. “I can’t do this today,” she told him, being honest. “I can’t be around you.”
He moved closer, refusing to let his hands come out of his pockets because he desperately wanted to touch her skin, to feel the soft perfection. He was being good, but it was hard. Especially when she looked so delectable. “Why is that?”
In the end, her white teeth bit down on those rosy, red lips and he couldn’t hold back. His hands slipped out of his pockets and landed on her waist, her soft, perfect, tiny waist that made her look so incredibly feminine.
Naya sighed, feeling his hands on her waist. They felt so perfect there, she didn’t bother to pull them away even though she knew that it was dangerous.
“You know why,” she finally replied, staring at the middle of his chest.
“Because we’ll end up in bed?” he offered, hopefully. It was his destination and if she would accept what was going on between them, she’d know that they were heading there as well.
“No!” she gasped and playfully smacked his arm. But the reality was, it was too possible. “No. Because we won’t end up in bed and we’ll both be frustrated since we’ll never be in bed together.”
He shrugged. “That’s fine.”
Her startled eyes looked up at his. “It is?”
He smiled and bent his head, nuzzling the skin on her neck. “Of course. I can do a lot with a chair. Or a sofa. I don’t need a bed.” He kissed her ear. “Kitchen tables even work in a pinch.”
She blushed and pulled out of his arms. Or tried to. He was holding her tightly now. “Is that all you ever think about?”
“When you’re around? Pretty much. Why don’t we just make love and get it out of the way. Then I can think about anything you want me to.”
She shivered, but pulled back. “Luke, I thought we were going out?”
He sighed, thinking he would be perfectly happy to stay in and make love to her for the next several days. “Fine,” he said, resigned and knowing that leaving here would be a better idea. Knowledge, he reminded himself. He had to figure out why she was so opposed to sex with him.
“Get your shoes. We’ll see some of the places you’ve printed out.”
She shook her head. “I need to call the owners, find out if it is okay to walk on the properties.”
He lifted one eyebrow, thinking she was just making up an excuse to avoid him now. But her eyes told him that she was being honest with him so he relented. Slightly. “You can do that from my car. Get your shoes.”
“The owners might not be available!” she replied, grasping for any reason that might help her keep her distance from him.
“You and I both know that the land owners don’t care if we walk along their land, especially if we’re serious buyers. Now, grab your purse and your shoes. We’re leaving and you’re taking me around to all of these places today. Or as many of them as we can get to during the daylight hours.”
Naya bit her lip, trying to think of something, anything that would discourage him. His only response was a lifting of one black eyebrow.
In the end, she relented, knowing it was better to get him out of her house. “Give me five minutes,” she said and walked away from him. She grabbed her shoes and a different shirt, needing to look somewhat professional while conducting business. Pulling on a warm, cashmere sweater she’d found on sale at the end of last winter, she felt much better. A touch of lipstick, fingers through her hair to pull it up higher and she was ready.
At the last minute, she grabbed a pair of sturdy boots, not sure how these land sites might look. If they were rough terrain, she’d need something more than just a pair of pretty, black flats.
For the next several hours, they went from one place to the next, climbing over rocks and logs, touring each area to see what kinds of views would be best.
What was worse, or better, was that he made her laugh! Goodness, he was charming. Relentlessly charming! They talked about everything, he grabbed a late lunch and they sat on a blanket to have a picnic, looking out at the ocean, and he told her stories about growing up with his brothers and being a twin. He asked her questions about her childhood and she actually opened up more with him that sunny afternoon than she had in a long, long time.
Yes, he tried to convince her to go out to dinner with him. No, she refused, repeatedly. And yes, she felt very alone that night, sitting in her tiny house and wondering what he was doing, if she should have stayed with him and just enjoyed his company.
But, as she pulled the blankets up over her that night, she knew that it was better this way. Better to be safe and alone rather than with him and hurt down the road.
The same pattern happened over the next several days. Naya was with Luke too often and every day, she fell more under his spell. Every night, she struggled to keep her fingers from dialing his number, begging him to come back to her, to make love to her.
She wasn’t sleeping, she was eating ice cream every night as sexual frustration clawed at her insides. And every morning, she woke up determined to be strong.
Only to fail miserably.
Chapter 4
“Naya?”
Luke looked at the woman standing in his doorway and his gut twisted. “What’s wrong, honey?” he asked, taking her hands and pulling her into his condo. “Talk to me. Are you hurt?”
“No. I’m not physically hurt.”
He led her over to his sofa and pulled her down, sitting next to her. “Okay, so tell me what happened. What’s wrong?” His hands cupped her face while his thumbs dried her tears.
“You!” she gasped out, playing with the already damp and shredded tissue in her hands. “You happened!” she snapped and stood up. Pacing in front of the sofa, she was unaware of the stunned reaction on his handsome features. “You happened into my life and I can’t get you out!”
“And you want me out?’ he asked, pretty damn sure she was still hiding from this thing between them.
Naya was furious that she was so upset while he leaned back, his arms spread wide against the back of the cushions. He looked completely relaxed while she was in the process of having a nervous breakdown.
With increasing frustration, she threw her arms up in the air, exasperated with him. “Yes! I’ve begged you to leave me alone! You’re too much for me! I can’t take your kind of…” she swished her fingers in the air. “I can’t take you!”
His eyebrows went up with that declaration. He had been relieved a moment ago, but he was getting angry now. “What about me can’t you take?”
She sighed. “Everything,” she whispered. “I tried!” Naya shook her head. “I tried so hard to ignore you, to get you out of my life. And when I couldn’t, when you wouldn’t leave me alone, I tried to be professional! I tried to keep a distance from you! But would you let me?”
“Hell no!” he declared, standing up and putting his hands on his hips. “You’re not in this alone, you know.”
“Yes!” she looked right at him, pointing her finger at him as if he’d done something horrible instead of just kissing her at every opportunity. “Yes, I’m in this alone! You don’t understand me. You don’t understand why I don’t want this!”
Defying His Charm Page 6