Spencer reached for her shoulders. “Calm down, Raina.”
“I won’t calm down.” She stepped away from him. She seemed to be getting more and more distraught as the minutes ticked by. “I’m trying to give Zoe a father and instead you lie and manipulate me into spending time with you.”
“I never lied to you,” Spencer replied harshly. “I didn’t realize the truth.”
“But when you did, you kept it to yourself. And now...and now...”
Spencer saw the moment reality hit Raina and she remembered that Cameron had died in a car crash four years earlier. Horror crossed her face and she stepped backward, stumbling until she reached the sofa, her hand clutching her mouth. “Ohmigod!”
Spencer instantly rushed over to the couch to comfort her. She looked up at him, tears glistening in her eyes. “Dear God!” Raina cried. “Zoe hasn’t just lost her mother. She’s lost her father, too!” Raina held her stomach as sobs began to rack her entire body.
Spencer’s arms came around Raina’s slender frame. “It’s okay,” he soothed her. He allowed her to cry onto his suit, stroking her hair and back until she began to quiet.
* * *
Some time later, Raina eventually got a hold of herself and her emotions. She was trying to sort out everything Spencer had just told her and the ramifications of it all. She was it. Raina and her parents were all the family Zoe had left because she was an orphan. Her mother had died of cervical cancer and her father in a car crash.
Raina recalled the news reports and seeing photos of the crumpled car on television and in newspapers. Spencer and Cameron had been considered basketball royalty. Cameron’s passing had caused quite a debate about seat belt laws. If she remembered correctly, he hadn’t been wearing one, but Spencer had and he’d survived. And wait...now he too was Zoe’s family. He was her uncle.
Eventually Raina slid from the comfort of Spencer’s arms to stare at him. “I’m sorry,” she said humbly. She’d accused him of keeping the truth from her, but as he’d said his memories of back then were a bit fuzzy.
“For what?” Spencer said.
“I said some pretty nasty things.”
“Yeah, well, you were in shock,” Spencer said. “You expected the results to say I was the father, but I’m not. Cameron is.”
“And Zoe still doesn’t get a father.”
Spencer nodded. “True, but she’s entitled to Cameron’s legacy and, as trustee of his will, I can see to that.”
Raina sighed. “It was never about the money, Spencer.”
“I know that, but at least it’ll help pay for her upbringing, her college education, maybe even her wedding one day.”
Raina began to tear up as she nodded. “But it won’t bring her father back.”
Spencer touched Raina’s thigh and she nearly jumped off the couch at the spark she felt. “I know, but I’ll do everything I can for Zoe.”
“You don’t owe us anything,” Raina said, slowly rising from the couch and pulling her purse over her shoulder. She started toward the door, but Spencer rose and stood in her path.
“Please don’t leave like this. I’d like to talk to you about the provisions of Cameron’s will. There is a clause that talks about any potential heirs.”
“Not now,” Raina said. Fate had stepped in and made a clear path for her to stay away from Spencer as he was dangerous to her health.
“Don’t deny Zoe what she’s entitled to,” Spencer said, “because you’re afraid to spend time with me.”
Raina spun around to face him. “I’m not afraid.”
“No?” Spencer stalked purposely toward her with an intense sexual look in his eyes.
Raina was frozen and stood still as their gazes locked. He seemed to be measuring her next step and devising a plan. Would she stand or take flight? Her pulse was skyrocketing because she knew that at any moment his mouth would claim hers as he’d done on the hayride and she would run out of options, but she still didn’t run.
“It would have been easier for you if I was Zoe’s father because then you’d be justified at keeping me at arm’s length. But now there’s no reason why we can’t see each other, and you’re running scared.”
Drawing a deep breath, Raina replied, “You’re wrong. You’re just upset that I’m turning you, the legendary Spencer Davis, down. Well all of us can’t fall at your feet.”
“You don’t say.” When he reached her, one arm circled around her waist and he pulled her closer to him. “Why don’t we test your theory?”
He brushed his mouth slowly, excruciatingly across hers, barely grazing her bottom lip. She gasped and it gave Spencer a fraction of an opening to make her melt against him. And melt she did.
He sealed his mouth to hers and her body called her out on her lie. She was totally affected by him. Her entire being tingled from his kiss and when his teeth tugged on her bottom lip, she opened her mouth to him, and he took full advantage.
His warm tongue swept inside her mouth, searching for hers and lighting a fire deep within her belly. She’d never been kissed like this before, so thoroughly, so passionately that she held on to him for dear life. She gave a small sigh of pleasure and wound her arms around his neck, kissing him back.
Spencer groaned and his fingers dived into her hair as he brought his body colliding against hers, causing her nipples to strain underneath the plaid shirt she wore, aching with an unfulfilled sexual energy. She tipped her head back and he moved, bracing her against the wall. Her legs were between his rock hard thighs so he could align their bodies and she could feel him, hard and throbbing against her.
Somehow he found the strength to pull away, and when he did Raina was limp in his arms. “So dinner then?” Spencer asked, sucking in a ragged breath. He’d proven his point. She wasn’t immune to him.
Mindlessly, Raina nodded her consent. She’d been deprived of male company for too long and she wanted the ache she’d been experiencing since she’d met Spencer to ease.
She wanted him.
Chapter 6
“Did I hear you correctly?” Summer inquired. “Did you just say you’re going out with Spencer Davis? Willingly?”
“Yes,” Raina said over the phone as she rubbed scented lotion on her skin after taking a long, hot shower. “And I know its short notice, but can you watch Zoe for me?”
“I thought you said you weren’t interested in the man.”
“I’m not. We’re going out to discuss Zoe,” Raina said.
“But Spencer isn’t the father.”
“No, but apparently his brother Cameron was and he’s executor of his will.”
“So, this is strictly business?” Summer asked.
“Exactly.” Raina spritzed perfume on her palms, neck, behind her ears and between her breasts.
Summer laughed. “I don’t believe that for a second. Why don’t you admit you like the man and want to spend more time with him?”
Raina stopped getting ready. “If I do, will that get you off my back?”
“Maybe.”
“Then, fine.” Raina sighed. “I’m going out with Spencer because I enjoy his company.”
“And you’re attracted to him?”
Raina’s mind spun back to the second kiss in Spencer’s office, which had been even more seductive and intoxicating than the first on the hayride. “Yes.”
“Then have Zoe bring an overnight bag,” Summer said.
That snapped Raina out of her daydreaming. “No, no,” she said, shaking her head fervently as if Summer could see her. “I don’t intend on going to bed with Spencer. We’re just sharing a meal together.”
“Humph” was all she heard from the other end of the line and then the dial tone.
Raina clicked the end button on her cell phone. What was Summer thinking? Sh
e wasn’t into casual sex, never had been. In fact, she could count her sexual partners on one hand. Not to mention the thought of going to bed with Spencer terrified her. Although he wasn’t Wilt Chamberlain, she was sure Spencer had had his share of sexual conquests. Women lined up to go to bed with athletes and movie stars, and Raina had no desire to become one of them.
Yet her mind told her to wear the sexiest underwear in her repertoire. As she rummaged through her bureau, Raina realized she didn’t have a lot to choose from. She was most comfortable in simple briefs. She wished she had more of a selection of lacy, satin nothings to choose from. She recalled a set she’d shoved into the back of the drawer from one of her and Summer’s shopping sprees. It would have to do.
Raina slid the lace demi bra with mesh netting over her shoulders and pulled up the matching bikini panties. She did not intend the evening to end with Spencer getting a chance to see her in her undies, but it was better safe than sorry.
Raina opened her closet and pulled out the dress she’d also bought during that very same shopping spree. She’d been waiting for the right occasion to wear it. It was a one-shoulder garnet-colored dress ruched at the waist and ruffled out to stop just above her knee. The garnet color was striking and certainly eye-catching, but it was subdued enough to make it appear she wasn’t trying too hard.
She slid the dress over her body and then stared at herself in the mirror. She was wearing her hair down and hopefully she had enough mousse in it to keep the waves in check for the evening. But she was still missing something.
She added some dangling red earrings, a matching necklace and a red clutch purse and she was all set. She bent her head to one side and studied herself. She looked darn good. Spencer would be shocked. He hadn’t seen her in anything other than jeans or casual clothes. He was certainly in for a treat. But then again, so was she. She was going out on a date with a sexy, handsome former basketball star. Oh Lord, what had she gotten herself into?
* * *
Spencer smiled as he drove to Raina’s home. He’d finally convinced the woman to go out on a real date with him. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had to work so hard to convince a woman to spend time with him. Many women just threw themselves at him, so it was refreshing to have to work at it. But Raina was more than a challenge to him. There was something about her feisty spirit that appealed to him and he wanted to know more about her.
Of course, he was immensely attracted to Raina. She tried to hide her curves under unflattering jeans and plaid shirts, but he’d had the opportunity to touch her, to caress her, and knew there was more lying underneath than she portrayed. Her genuine shyness and certain naïveté about life were turn-ons. He was looking forward to corrupting her. He smiled to himself.
But first he would have to romance her, charm her and show her he wasn’t the rogue she’d read about online. He was a changed man. And he had the perfect way to do it.
The Alvin Ailey dance troupe was in town and he’d secured two tickets on the main floor. They would enjoy dinner beforehand at a small restaurant he’d discovered in Brickell. The restaurant had great views of the bay and with its muted lighting and candles offered the perfect romantic setting.
Tonight, Raina Martin would not be able to escape him. She was going to let her guard down so he could get close. Because his gut told him Raina was the kind of woman that came along once in a lifetime and he wasn’t about to let her go.
* * *
“Wow!” Spencer’s mouth gaped open when Raina opened the door to let him into her home. “You look amazing.” His eyes traveled from her face, which she’d enhanced with makeup, to the swell of her breasts in the garnet dress, then down her hips and her calves and then back up again.
His praise caused a confident smile to spread across Raina’s face as she looked at him. “Thank you. Would you like to come in?”
“Sure, but we can’t stay long. Our reservation is for six and we have a very tight deadline.”
“Are we going someplace after?”
Spencer looked at her. “But of course. You didn’t think we were just going to dinner, especially with you in that dress.” He motioned to her outfit. “We have to go someplace special.” He followed her inside the foyer and looked around.
She watched him eye her living room, which was done in earth colors. A burnt orange sectional sat against one wall with several throw pillows, and a fifty-inch television, various art pieces and tons of photos of her, Alexa and Zoe were set against another. She wanted Zoe to always remember Alexa.
“Very nice,” he commented. “So where’s Zoe?”
“Summer came to pick her up for a sleepover.”
Spencer raised a brow at the sleepover. She saw the wheels turning in his head about the implications of what that meant, but he didn’t say anything.
He followed her down the hall and into a state-of-the-art kitchen with maple cabinets, a stainless steel two-door refrigerator with freezer underneath, a gas range with a grill in the center, a double oven and convection in the wall and a huge island in the center with plenty of room for chopping vegetables.
She watched him walk over to the wooden table and bench that were in her breakfast nook and surrounded by a slew of bay windows. “This is great, Raina.” He smoothed his large masculine hands across the grainy surface. “Where did you find it?”
“At this farmhouse Summer and I visited when we were looking for some organic ingredients.”
“It’s a showstopper,” he said. “But then again I expected nothing less of a chef such as you.”
Raina chuckled and touched her chest. “Although I was classically trained, I still have a lot to learn.”
Spencer turned to her. “Well you obviously are doing something great. Your catering business is the top in the market.”
“Word of mouth,” she offered.
“There’s nothing better,” he responded. “You ready to go?”
“Absolutely,” Raina said. After she’d grabbed her shawl and clutch purse, they headed out the front door.
Raina was surprised Spencer was driving the Bentley. For some reason, she’d expected he’d be eager to show her his wealth by driving another expensive car.
He opened the car door for her and she slid inside. Her stomach was a ball of nerves as Spencer climbed inside, turned on the ignition and took off.
“Don’t be nervous,” Spencer said, touching her hand. It was as if he could sense her unease sitting across from him in the passenger side. “I don’t bite.”
“You sure about that?” she asked, eyeing him from beneath hooded lashes.
He glanced at her quickly and smiled. “Yes. And if you hadn’t kept putting me off so long, we would already have had our first date by now and you’d be accustomed to me.”
Raina doubted that was even possible. Spencer had an energy that overwhelmed her. Whenever she was around him, he sucked all the air out of the room.
They drove the rest of the way to the restaurant at times in a comfortable silence and others commenting about places they were passing by on the drive. Raina learned that Spencer came from a small area of Miami, Opa-locka. She was eager to learn more about his childhood, but they’d already exited the ramp and several minutes later were pulling up to the valet at the restaurant.
Raina barely got the door open before Spencer strode over to her side to help her out of the car. She looked around. Spencer had chosen well; the restaurant had a picturesque view of the Brickell waterfront.
“C’mon.” Spencer tucked her arm in his and they walked up the incline to the hotel where the Latin restaurant with a flair for international cuisine was housed.
Spencer gave his name and soon the hostess was showing them to their seats. “I hope you don’t mind that I chose outside seating,” he said. “It’s such a lovely night, I thought it would be nice.�
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“Don’t mind at all.”
After passing by several round tables covered with white tablecloths, the hostess sat them in a secluded alcove on the cobblestone patio overlooking the bay.
Raina sat down, accepted the menu and was perusing it when she noticed Spencer staring at her.
“What?” she asked.
“You.” His stare was bold as he assessed her frankly. “I’m not used to seeing you all glammed up. I like it. I like it a lot.”
His words were husky with desire, and the smoldering flame in his eyes caused her stomach to flutter. Raina wasn’t used to a man showing such blatant sexual desire for her, and it both excited and scared her. “You look very handsome, as well,” was all she could manage.
Spencer smiled. “Why, thank you.”
The waiter came and Spencer without hesitation ordered them each a Caipirinha. “I promise you’ll love it,” he said at her raised brow. “It’s their specialty drink.”
“Can’t wait to try it.” Raina reached for the glass of water the waiter had filled before his departure to wet her dry throat. She felt like a breathless girl of eighteen. She willed her breathing to calm down to a more even rhythm. After several minutes, she tried to move the conversation to something safer. “In the car, you mentioned you were from Miami. Tell me more.”
It seemed as if Spencer gathered she was trying to escape the intensity of his stare, so he humored her. “Yes, Opa-locka is a small community. Cameron and I grew up very poor. And while most of the teenage boys our age were getting into drugs and guns or going into the military, basketball was a way out for me. And Cameron, well he always idolized me and soon we were playing basketball together.”
“Your life sounds very different from mine,” Raina replied. “I grew up in Miami. My sister and I were very sheltered. We went to a private Catholic school until high school. And I must tell you public school was a rude awakening.”
A Chance with You Page 7