Moonlight Kisses

by Phyllis Bourne

  “Glad to help out,” Cole replied, genuinely meaning it. If being here was important to Sage. It was important to him, too.

  Taking their coats and hanging them in a closet near the front door, the woman turned to look at Sage. “Thanks, again. Not many friends would leave one of the most glamorous cities in one of the most glamorous countries in the world to help out with a kiddie party.”

  Cole silently agreed. He wished they could have stayed longer and enjoyed some time together at Lake Como; however, Sage’s loyalty to her friend impressed him. Every day he was with her, Cole found something else to love and admire about this woman.

  “There was no way I was going to miss Kenny’s sixth birthday,” Sage said.

  On cue, the birthday boy stood on tiptoe and attempted to put his ear against the wrapped box in Sage’s arms. His eyes were pleading when he stared up at her. “Is there a puppy in here?”

  Evie put her fists on her hips and narrowed her eyes at Sage. “There had better not be.”

  “Not this time,” Sage said. “But it’s something I think you’ll like almost as much.”

  Kenny looked to his mother. “Can’t I open just this one before the party?” he asked, quickly adding an exaggerated please.

  “Yeah, please.” Sage mimicked her small friend.

  Evie sighed. “Oh, all right.”

  As she led them through to the living and dining rooms, Cole noticed the house was laid out exactly like Sage’s. It had a lived-in look about it, which, despite being a stranger, made him feel welcome.

  The furniture had been pushed into corners. Three folding banquet tables covered with red paper tablecloths and surrounded by chairs occupied the dining room. The living room was filled with children’s games.

  Sage placed her present on one of the tables then hoisted Kenny until he was standing on one of the chairs. “Happy Birthday,” she said.

  Without preliminaries, Kenny ripped the wrapping paper off the box as the adults stood by and watched.

  “Hey! It’s a candy machine,” he yelled excitedly, “full of Skittles!”

  Kenny threw his arms around Sage and hugged her. “Thanks!” He didn’t waste time in turning the knob on the machine, which dispensed him a handful of the candy. He shoved it into his mouth and happily chewed. Almost immediately he turned the knob for another handful of candy, this one he held out to share with Sage.

  “Thanks, kiddo.” Sage accepted the candy. She looked like a kid herself, Cole thought, as she also shoved the small pieces into her mouth.

  Kenny helped himself to another handful of Skittles, and then announced he was headed his room to watch his favorite cartoon.

  “A candy machine.” Evie frowned at both Sage and Cole once her son was out of earshot. “I’m going to send you two the dental bills when all that candy rots his teeth.”

  Cole thought about the kid’s mouth. “What teeth? He’s barely got any.”

  He watched the woman’s eyes go wide and chin drop to her chest. Thinking the offhanded comment offended her, Cole considered apologizing.

  “Oh, my God,” Evie said, looking from him to Sage and back at him again. Then she pointed a finger at both them and laughed. “You two are exactly alike.”

  “I told her the same thing about her son’s lack of teeth just a few weeks ago,” Sage explained.

  “No doubt about it.” Evie smiled. “You’re absolutely perfect for each other.”

  Cole wrapped an arm around Sage’s waist and pulled her to his side. The adoring look she gave him made his heart turn a backflip in his chest.

  Sage’s neighbor was right. They were perfect for each other. He’d finally convinced Sage of it in Italy, and that their companies could peacefully coexist.

  Now all he had left to do was persuade her to be his wife.

  * * *

  A knock sounded on Sage’s office door, and she looked up to see Amelia wearing her smug I-told-you-so expression on her face, which only meant one thing.

  “Prince Charming’s here,” the young woman teased.

  Sage narrowed her eyes. “You would think you’d be sick of needling me by now.”

  After all, her and Cole’s relationship was old news. They had returned from Italy six weeks ago, and while their days were dedicated to running their respective businesses, nights and weekends were devoted to each other. In fact they hadn’t spent a night apart since reuniting in Milan, dividing their time between her home and his town house.

  Sage couldn’t remember ever being happier. Neither could Amelia, who reminded her daily that she’d predicted a romance between them before they’d even met.

  “Nope. Never gets old,” Amelia confirmed. “What was it I told you again the day Cole first called?”

  The man in question strode through the door of Sage’s office door. “A tall, good-looking millionaire will be smitten by her photo, fall hopelessly in love and then proceed to sweep her off her feet,” Cole answered the question.

  Amelia crossed her arms. “You know the rules, Mr. Sinclair,” she scolded. “You’re aren’t supposed to come in this office until we make sure there aren’t any Stiletto secrets on Sage’s desk.”

  Cole raised a brow at the use of her actual name. “Sage?”

  Sage watched the smug look return to her assistant’s face. “Nobody calls her general anymore,” the young woman said. “Ever since you two got together, she’s gone from grizzly bear to teddy bear.” Amelia inclined her head in a short bow. “The entire Stiletto team is in your debt.”

  Sage stood and rounded her desk. In an instant, she was in Cole’s arms. He captured her lips in a kiss that didn’t end until she heard Amelia’s dreamy sigh in the background.

  “Is your boss free for lunch today?” As always, Cole directed his question at Amelia, who knew her schedule better than she did.

  “No. She has three appointments this afternoon,” the young woman said. “And your nooners...uh, I mean lunches always turn into three-hour affairs.”

  Sage glanced at her watch and then at her assistant. There was one subject she’d retained her grizzly-bear attitude toward.

  “I’m headed to class now,” Amelia said.

  “Good,” Sage said. “Shut the door behind you.”

  With the door closed, Sage gave Cole a real kiss. One filled with the soul-deep passion she felt for him.

  “What if I promise to be good, and have you back at work in an hour?”

  Sage felt his growing hardness pressed against her. Her entire body wanted to believe him, but she knew better. Plus, during work hours, Stiletto business took precedence over sexy business. “You’re always good, but we’ve never been back in an hour.”

  Cole sighed and released her. Sage retreated behind her desk, using it as a physical barrier between herself and temptation.

  “I had a surprise for you, but I guess it’ll just have to wait until tonight,” he said.

  Sage’s eyes narrowed. “I hope you didn’t go out and buy me anything. If you did, you’ll just have to take it back to whatever pricey store you got it from,” she said. “I don’t want anything from you, but you.”

  Cole’s face creased with the familiar frown that crossed his face whenever the subject came up. It was the only thing they disagreed on. “You’ve told me enough times,” he said.

  Then he leaned over her desk and kissed her forehead. “I said I have a surprise for you, I didn’t say I bought you anything.”

  Sage opened her mouth to tell him he had better not have, but he pressed his forefinger to her lips to silence her.

  “My place. Tonight,” he said.

  She nodded mutely.

  Cole looked down at a report on her desk, and she swiftly swept it into her top drawer.

  “You know the rules,” she said. “We
don’t discuss business.”

  “Then I guess you don’t want to tell me who your appointments are with this afternoon,” he said.

  Sage wasn’t even sure herself. As she continued her efforts to stop micromanaging and free her employees up to do their jobs, Amelia had a more active role in determining who and what was worth Sage’s time.

  She leaned forward and crossed her arms on her desktop. “I’ll tell you right after you tell me all about the Espresso business you handled this morning.”

  “Touché, Ms. Matthews,” Cole said. “I’ll see you tonight.”

  “Want me to bring Chinese or pizza?”

  “Pizza,” he said. “And those sexy heels you’re wearing.”

  Sage watched his retreating back and began counting the minutes until she’d see him again tonight.

  Two appointments later, she glanced at her watch, eager to get her third and last one of the day behind her. Right on cue, Amelia walked through her door followed by a man Sage recognized.

  “Your next appointment is here,” her assistant said. “Sean Cox of Force Cosmetics.”

  Chapter 18

  Cole heard Sage’s key in the lock of his front door that evening and looked up from the furniture he’d spent the past half hour rearranging.

  “Upstairs,” he called out to her from the master bedroom.

  “Want me to bring the pizza up?”

  “Just yourself.”

  Her footsteps sounded on the staircase leading to the second floor of his three-story town house, and Cole exhaled. He hoped Sage would be pleased with the surprise as well as other things he had in store for her tonight.

  He met her at the threshold of the bedroom.

  “Sorry I’m late.” She chewed at her bottom lip.

  “Everything, okay?” Cole asked, his protective instincts on full alert.

  She shrugged off the question, but worry lingered in her eyes. “Just work stuff.”

  They’d agree on the flight home from Milan that if they were going to pursue a relationship, conversations about their respective businesses were off-limits. They were lovers, but they were still competitors.

  “Well, let’s see if I can’t take your mind off Stiletto,” Cole said. “Close your eyes.”

  She did as he asked. He grasped her hand and led her into the bedroom.

  “Okay, you can open them now,” he said, and then held his breath waiting on her reaction.

  Sage gasped and a delighted expression replaced the worry he’d seen on her face. “Oh, my God. It’s exactly like the one...”

  “No,” he interrupted. “It’s the same one.”

  Cole looked from the grin on her pretty face to the armchair he’d had shipped here from his Milan condo.

  “I’m assuming the bottle of champagne and two glasses on the table next to it are for us to celebrate being reunited with our favorite piece of furniture,” she said.

  The mischievous spark Cole had grown to love as much as he loved her gleamed in her brown eyes. He sat down in the chair and patted his lap. “Come sit with me,” he said. “I have something to talk to you about.”

  Sage shed her coat and tossed it on the bed. She raised a brow. “Will I need my underwear for this talk?”

  “For now,” he said.

  Sage sat in the space next to him on the large chair. “What’s wrong?”

  “Our living situation,” Cole said. “I don’t want to do this anymore.”

  “I don’t understand,” she said.

  “Two nights at your place, another night at mine.” He cupped her cheek with his palm, and their gazes locked. “I want us to have one place. Our place. With our kitchen, our television with our remote control to fight over and most of all, our bed to share every night.”

  Sage blinked. A hesitant smile touched her lips. “You want us to move in together?”

  “I do. We’ve proved over these past weeks that we can keep our business lives from interfering with what we have together,” Cole said. “But I want to share more than just housekeeping, Sage. I’m asking for forever. I’m asking you to be my bride.”

  The moments it took for her to absorb his proposal seemed endless as Cole waited on a response. Tears brimmed in her eyes, before a single one splashed onto the hand holding her cheek.

  She kissed his hand and nodded. “Yes.” Her voice cracked with emotion.

  Cole reached into his shirt pocket and retrieved the ring resting against his heart. He saw Sage’s eyes light up, and he knew he’d selected the right one.

  Taking her hand, he slid the pear-shaped ruby, which was flanked by two diamonds, onto her finger. “I chose a ruby ring because you made red my favorite color.”

  “It’s beautiful.” She held her hand up. “I love it, and I love you.” She continued to stare at the ring as the stones glittered under the bedroom lights.

  “Now that I’m officially your fiancé, there’s something we need to get straight from the start,” Cole said.

  Sage looked past her ring at his face. “You put this ring on my finger, not through my nose.” She arched a brow. “You’re not the boss of me.”

  He leaned over and kissed her sassy, red-slicked mouth. “We’re partners in this life, Sage. There are no bosses,” he said. “However, I am going to find you the biggest, the glitziest, the most luxurious house in Nashville.”

  She opened her mouth to protest, but he continued. “I’m buying it outright and handing you the deed. It’ll be yours free and clear.” Cole grasped her hand and gently squeezed it. “So you will always have a home of your own that you’ll never be displaced from.”

  She opened her mouth again.

  Cole cut her off before she could protest. “This is the one thing I won’t compromise on,” he said. “Nor will I take no for an answer.”

  “I wasn’t going to say no.” She squeezed his hand back. “All I wanted to say was thank you, and that I love you.”

  Cole patted his lap. “Why don’t you climb aboard and tell me just how much.”

  Sage’s dress gathered around her parted thighs as she sat astride him. She wrapped her arms around his neck. “Will I need my underwear for this part of our discussion?”

  Cole grinned. “Absolutely, not.”

  Chapter 19

  Sage stared at the clock, watching the glowing digital numbers change in the darkness.

  She was in the bed beside the man she loved and could feel the weight of his ring on her finger. They’d been engaged three days now, yet the joy she’d found in her personal life didn’t keep her work worries at bay.

  Force Cosmetics can be your best friend or your worst enemy. Sean Cox’s words crept into her dreams and stole any chance of sleeping.

  She’d been a fighter her entire life, and she’d fight this, too. She just had to figure out how. Sage lifted Cole’s arm and gently extricated herself from his embrace. It was three in the morning, and she didn’t want to wake him. After all, this wasn’t his problem.

  “I’m awake.” Cole’s deep voice pierced the silent night.

  “Go back to sleep,” Sage said. “I’m just headed downstairs to make some chamomile tea.” They were staying at his town house tonight. Over the weeks, she’d become as comfortable here as she felt at her house.

  Before she could get out of bed, Cole threw back the covers and switched on the bedside lamp. “I’ll make you a cup of tea,” he said. “And when I come back with it, I want to know exactly what’s kept you awake the past three nights.”

  Sage sighed wearily and rested her back against the headboard. Stiletto wasn’t Cole’s concern. When he returned with her tea, she’d simply tell him so.

  Minutes later, Sage took a tentative sip of the hot brew. Cole sat down beside her. He wore pajama bottoms and
his hard, muscled chest was bare.

  “What going on, Sage?” he asked. When she didn’t immediately answer, he continued. “I noticed you were distracted before I proposed, but I thought it was simply a rough day at work and let it go. Now you’ve barely slept in three nights. Talk to me.”

  She swallowed another sip of tea. “It’s Stiletto business.”

  “When you’re picking at your dinner and not sleeping nights, it becomes my business,” he said.

  “I’m the CEO of Stiletto. It’s my company, and I’ll handle the problem,” she insisted.

  Cole took the mug and sat it on the bedside table. “You see these shoulders?”

  Sage took in the breadth of his broad, strong shoulders and nodded. He patted one with his hand. “Right here is where you lay your troubles. All of them.”

  She started to refuse again.

  “Trust me, Sage,” he said.

  Sage closed her eyes briefly and blew out a breath. “Sean Cox came to my office three days ago. Force wants to buy Stiletto.”

  Cole nodded, his lips pressed into a firm line.

  “You don’t seem surprised.” It had been the first reaction Sage had expected from him.

  He rubbed at the back of his neck. “I’m not. After we saw Sean in Milan, I suspected they’d were looking to acquire both Stiletto and Espresso.”

  “Has Cox contacted you yet?”

  Cole shook his head. “But if he’s in town, I’m sure it won’t be long.”

  Sage hadn’t wanted to talk about this with him, but now that they were, there was no reason not to tell him the rest. “They’re offering a quarter of the amount of money you did for it.”

  Cole nodded. Again he didn’t appear taken aback. “First, Sean made you a lowball offer, then he also offered you the ‘opportunity’ to continue to run your company as their employee for a six-figure salary,” he said. “However Force, as the new owner, would have the final approval over any major decisions.”

  “That’s exactly what he said.” Sage reached for the mug on the bedside table and took another sip from it. “But how did you know?”

  “Because I trained him. He’s doing my old job,” Cole said. “What came next was a warning about Force either being your friend or your enemy.”