by Wendy Knight
She blushed and ducked her head. “I am reading.”
“Sure, sure. I know I’m amazingly attractive but try to focus, Butterfly.”
“Also amazingly humble.”
He laughed, low and quiet without turning from his computer. Azura tried her book again, curling her feet underneath her and propping her elbow on the desk. She was finally getting into it when another man came up from somewhere in the abyss of the building. “Crew, do you have time to go over these formulas? My people can’t get them right and I’m trying to get done so I can head home.”
Crew sat back, blinking. “I’m actually trying to beat the storm. We’re on our way to Essex tonight.”
The man winced. “Ouch. Okay, sorry.”
Crew nudged Azura’s chair with his foot, jarring her from her book. “But I happen to know a brilliant mechanical engineer major. Maybe she could go over it with you.”
The man looked dubious as Azura blinked owlishly up at him. “You’re a mechanical engineering major?”
It was not the first time she’d gotten that reaction.
She raised an eyebrow. “I am.”
Crew went back to his computer, chuckling.
“What year?”
Sighing, Azura held her hand out for the laptop. “I’m a junior. Gimme.”
Crew outright laughed, trying unsuccessfully to turn it into a cough. The man hesitated, then handed her the computer.
She clicked through the program he was working on, gnawing on a thumbnail. “I don’t see anything...”
“I know. This is why I’m having issues. There aren’t any problems, but the numbers aren’t working.” The man leaned over the computer as well, his finger following the columns on the screen. He was older than they were by at least ten years. Probably not an intern, if she had to guess.
They were silent for several minutes, watching numbers race by while Azura’s brain struggled to keep up. It would have been so much easier if Crew hadn’t been sitting right next to her.
He smelled amazing.
Amazing smells were distracting.
“There.” Azura sat back, jabbing at the screen. “You missed an x in that formula and it throws everything off.”
“That formula doesn’t need an x. Only one exponent is necess—” He froze, his words dying abruptly, and then he swore. “You’re right. It needs an x.”
“Otherwise, you have an imaginary number.” She grabbed a notebook and wrote the entire equation out, adding the missing exponent. “See?”
“Nice. You’re my hero. We’ve been going over this for hours.”
She smiled, handing the laptop back to him. “Sometimes you just need a fresh pair of eyes. You stare at a thing so long you can’t see it anymore.”
“Exactly. Thank you. My employees thank you too, I’m sure. I didn’t catch your name.” He stuck out his hand and she took it.
“Azura.”
“Ken. Have a good night and a safe trip. Happy holidays and all that.” He backed away, waving, before he disappeared down the stairwell.
Crew glanced over at her. “That was our manager of engineering. Way to show up the old guy.”
“His eyes were bloodshot. He’s been staring at the screen too long trying to find a problem his brain refuses to see.” Azura curled back into the chair, her knees tucked up to her chest so she could rest her chin on them. “I was at a very crucial point in my book, by the way. He scared the crap out of me.”
Crew shook his head, chuckling. “I’m almost done here. Five more minutes?”
“Fine. I’ll read fast.” She reached for her phone, and the chair slid backward, dumping her out the front. She landed on her hands and knees on the floor, proud of herself that she wasn’t in a messy heap.
“Holy— are you okay?” Crew crouched down next to her, helping her up before she could even register the embarrassment.
“Yeah—yeah. I don’t even know what happened.”
He checked her hands and tapped on her knees, watching her face to see if she winced. “The curse happened. That was a freak thing right there.”
She sighed, settling gingerly back into her chair. “They usually are.”
“Does anything hurt?”
She smiled, waving him away. “No. I fell like a foot, Crew. I’m okay, I promise. Finish your work.”
“I’m trying. You keep falling out of chairs and stuff.”
She shrugged, laughing. A few days ago, she’d fled his house in embarrassment and now she was laughing it off and casually going back to her book.
She was all grown up and handling things. Look at that.
“At least I didn’t ruin your couch this time.”
“The night is young, Butterfly. The night is young.”
THE storm hit just as they crossed the Connecticut state line. Crew tried to outrun it, but traffic was horrible. The flakes hit and minutes later, the snow was so thick Azura could barely see through the windshield. “Holy crap,” she breathed.
“It’s fine. It’s behind us. Once we get moving again we should be able to stay ahead of it. You warm enough?” He glanced over, the taillights of the car in front of them lighting his face. Even red-tinged, he was gorgeous.
He’d buried her in a blanket because she’d fallen in the snow on the way to his truck and her pants were soaked. “Yep. Keep your eyes on the road, Galahad. These are treacherous times.”
He half-chuckled, turning back just as they passed the off-ramp that had clogged everything so badly. Finally, traffic moved and the big truck leaped forward like a stallion breaking from the pack. The snow fell behind them and the only sound for several miles was the growl of the engine and Crew humming along to the radio. Christmas music, he’d told her, was all he could find.
He had satellite radio, so she seriously doubted that.
“Entertain me,” he said abruptly. “I’m falling asleep.”
She raised her eyebrows in alarm. “That’s never a good thing in a snowstorm.”
“Snowstorm’s behind us. It’s fine. Talk to me. That’ll keep me awake.” His dark eyes briefly left the road and he hit her with that puppy dog gaze he seemed to have mastered so well.
“Okay. Rapid fire questions. Have you ever played it?”
Crew smirked. “No, I don’t believe I have.”
“I ask you a question. You answer then ask me one. Quick answers.” She snapped her fingers. “Nothing deep that takes an hour to explain.”
“Got it. Go.” Crew nodded.
“Favorite color?”
“Green,” he answered promptly. “You?”
“Red. Favorite food?”
“Steak. Medium rare. What did you want to be when you were little?”
She hesitated, trying to remember.
“Rapid answers, Azura. Keep up.”
“A tennis player, but only because there was no major league baseball for girls.”
“You play baseball?” He nodded in approval. “I like baseball.”
Azura leaned back into the seat, trying to stretch her legs. “I know. You play second base.” Her eyes widened at her stupidity as Crew laughed.
“You have been watching me. I knew it. I mean, you said you went to football games and happened to see me play, but I knew. And now look at you. You’ve been stalking me for years, haven’t you? Admit it.”
She heaved a long suffering sigh. “Your arrogance knows no bounds. I go to lots of games. I like sports. You’re good. I cheer for you. I know your name. It’s not stalking. I go to basketball games and you’re not even there.”
“Probably to throw me off.” He nodded. “So I wouldn’t suspect the stalking.”
Azura rolled her eyes. “That’s it. You caught me.”
Crew tapped on the steering wheel. “Fine, back to our game. Where do you want to be in five years?”
“It was my turn,” Azura said. “Stop cheating.”
Crew laughed, holding up a hand. “Fine, fine. Go.”
His laugh warmed her
despite the winter storm chasing them down. “What did you want to be when you were little.”
Crew’s lips twitched to the side and he drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. “You’re going to laugh.”
“I won’t, I promise.” Azura held up what she assumed were scout’s honor fingers, but since she’d never had brothers or been a scout, she could only guess.
Crew ran a hand through his thick hair and glanced over at her, eyes pleading. “You will.”
“I won’t. That would be mean.”
He pulled in a long breath. “I wanted to be a knight. Like Sword in the Stone. I wanted to ride horses and battle with swords and save dragons.”
“You—do you mean slay dragons?”
Crew looked offended, frowning at the windshield. “No. I wanted to save the dragons. Everyone else was always trying to kill them. They needed someone to defend them.”
His answer was so sweet and so annoyed all at once and it made her heart ache. “Could you be any more perfect?” she murmured without thinking.
Always, with the no thinking.
He held up a finger, shushing her. “Wait your turn.”
“That wasn’t my question,” she said, his skin warm against her lips.
Crew went very still and pulled his hand back. He blinked twice and sucked in another deep breath. “Right.” He cleared his throat. “Right.”
Her mouth still tingled where he’d touched her, warm and delicious and she had to struggle to see straight. She couldn’t have these kinds of reactions, not to him. He was too perfect, and too easy to fall for. And she couldn’t do that. Not until she had a secure future ahead of her. Good job, and then she could move on. Hopefully, he would wait that long.
He was perfect. He had women beating down his door. Of course, he wouldn’t wait that long.
“So...” He cleared his throat again. “Where do you see yourself in five years?”
She tipped her head, playing absently with a curl that had escaped her bun. “I want to have a job. And a house that I can afford. And a good savings account.”
Crew squinted over at her. “Seriously? That’s your five-year plan? What are you, forty?”
“Fine, hot shot. What’s yours?”
“I’ll be an architect. Gathering clients so I can open my own firm. I’ll have been to at least five different countries—”
“How many countries have you been to so far?” she interrupted, hoping he wouldn’t realize that she’d asked a question when it wasn’t her turn.
He winced. “Does Canada count?”
“Yes.”
“Oh.” Breathing a sigh of relief, he nodded. “Then yes, I’ve been to another country.”
“But—but your family—”
“My parents were always working. There was no time for vacations. When they did go out of the country for shoots, I was in school.”
Wow. She was flabbergasted. So much money, but at what cost? Her family had always been broke, and there was never money for vacations, but she’d assumed that wealthy people traveled all the time. That money gave them freedom from constant work.
At least in Crew’s case, she’d been so wrong.
“That’s why you and Katrina are so close. You only had each other.”
Crew shrugged. “It’s better now. They have more time. Can I finish my answer?”
“Yes. Sorry, go ahead. I won’t interrupt again.” She crossed her hand over her heart, a pointless move since he was watching the road.
“Also, I’ll be married. Or at least engaged. And maybe own a couple stars. Oh! And I will have looked into an active volcano. Did you know there are sharks in the lava?”
Something in her twinged. He wanted to be married in five years. She didn’t even dare hope for that, and yet the thought of him marrying someone else, even just smiling at someone else—it hurt. It hurt and it had no business hurting. Swallowing hard, she said softly, “I don’t think you can see the sharks from the top of the volcano.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
“We’re almost there.” Crew navigated the empty, icy streets. The snow had caught them and the last several miles had been tense. It was past midnight and he was exhausted, but he wouldn’t have traded the last two and a half hours for anything. He’d had Azura all to himself and he’d learned more about her than any date they could have gone on. “One more question.”
She yawned and nodded. “I’m ready.”
He pulled off the road and stopped at the high gate. Azura leaned forward, eyes wide as he hit the button on his console and the gate swung open into the long, tree-lined drive. His dad loved vineyards. He couldn’t make wine—he’d tried and failed—but he still surrounded the entire estate with them. Christmas lights wound their way around the trees along the drive, casting Azura in a soft white light.
She looked like an angel.
“Why aren’t we dating?”
She choked, sitting back into her seat in a rush as she blinked over at him.
Crew laughed. Not quite the reaction he’d been expecting.
“I don’t do relationships during the holidays. Everyone is crazy,” she sputtered.
Crew nodded. “So I just have to wait until after New Years?”
Her eyes widened even more, and she shook her head. “You, Crew Bacall, are insufferable.”
He spread his hands wide. “Why? It’s a legitimate question. You said not during the holidays. After New Years isn’t the holidays anymore.”
The house came into view, and she turned slowly toward it, her jaw dropping. It was a big Tudor-style mansion, with a circular courtyard and stables on the hill above. Nine bedrooms, thirteen bathrooms, and a guest house in case his grandparents came because neither of his parents could stand to live with them for more than a couple hours. The grey brick was lit by thousands of Christmas lights, and a giant Christmas tree decorated with angels and cardinals and silver and white tinsel stood in the center of the courtyard.
“You didn’t answer my question, Butterfly.”
She shoved her hair away from her face, slowly pulling her glazed gaze back to him. “This is why, Crew. Look what you come from. Look what I come from. They are not the same. It would never work. And I have to have stability first. A good job. Savings. Security.”
He opened his mouth to argue or to say something flippant, but she continued, the spark returning to those green, green eyes. “Besides, you’re a Christmas fan. It would never work. Our kids would be so confused. Christmas? Horror movies?” She shook her head. “The battle would traumatize them for life.”
He pulled into the garage next to Katrina’s car and killed the engine. “We’ll see,” he said smugly.
She laughed quietly, unbuckling her seatbelt. “You can’t talk like that, Crew. People will think you’re serious.”
I am serious.
He was surprised at how serious he was. More than he’d ever been before.
“Crew!” His mom barreled through the door, all five feet of her dressed in designer pajamas that cost more than his textbooks. “I was so worried! I didn’t dare call because I didn’t want to text you and Kat said you wouldn’t be here until after midnight, but the storm! They’re saying it’s the worst we’ve had in years!”
Lila had always had a lot of energy. He blamed the coffee she was constantly chugging, and he’d never seen her without it. He honestly had no idea what she would be like if someone took her caffeine away. She bear hugged him, nearly cracking his ribs.
“Hey Mama,” he gasped and she released him enough that he could breathe almost normally. “The roads weren’t too bad. I want to introduce you to someone.”
He pulled her around the side of the truck, unsure how Azura would react given her own tenuous relationship with her mother. He’d seen her cold, he’d seen her friendly, he’d seen her adorable, he’d seen her panic and take off running, which he really hoped she didn’t do because it was damn cold out there and she would never make it over the fence.
; He had not, until that moment, seen her shy. She was frozen in place next to the passenger door, bag clutched to her chest like a security blanket, dark green eyes wide in her pale face. “Mama, this is Azura.”
“Azura.” Lila was not shy. She’d been gone for much of his childhood, but she was warm and loving and kind. She’d let him bring home strays—animals and friends who had nowhere to go. She’d sent extra lunches for kids at school who didn’t have any. She worried about the cats outside who refused to be tamed. She adopted everything and treated it like her own. She did the same now, leaving Crew’s side and enveloping Azura, bag and all, in a hug. Azura’s eyes widened even more and she stared at Crew over his mother’s head. He nodded encouragingly, and slowly, Azura dropped one hand from the bag and awkwardly hugged Lila back. “I’ve heard so much about you. Katrina said you are the most interesting person she’s ever met. I can’t wait to hear all about the curse.”
She pulled back, holding Azura at arm’s length. “You are beautiful. Wow! Crew, did you see how pretty she is?”
Azura blushed from her hairline to her collarbone and Crew laughed. “Yeah, Mama. I saw how pretty she is.” You have no idea. “Azura, this is my Mama, Lila.”
Lila was a spitfire. She had the same dark hair and dark eyes as her children, but she was tiny, always put together, and barely weighed 100 pounds. He could bench press his mother.
He hadn’t, but he could.
“Nice to meet you.” Azura’s voice trembled. He’d seen her stare down men twice her size, sass her way into solving the engineer manager’s issues, and tell an entire ambulance crew just how bad Christmas was, but with his mother, who didn’t even come to Azura’s chin, she was terrified.
“You’re exhausted. I heard Katrina got you up so early for breakfast. She does that all the time. Come, let’s get you settled.” Lila hesitated, one arm around Azura. “You’re not afraid of dogs, are you?”
Azura smiled. “No ma’am.”
“Please. Call me Lila or call me Mama. The only people who call me ma’am are the postal carriers and the guy at the bank.” She led Azura inside, chattering non-stop about professional employees. Azura risked a glance over her shoulder at Crew, green eyes still so wide he worried they’d fall out of her head.