“My son is a lucky man,” he said gruffly. And before she could ask what he meant, he explained. “You are incredibly gracious, Leanna, even to those who don’t deserve it. You have a good heart. I hope you can forgive Brody. I’m afraid so much of his harsh personality is my fault.”
She swallowed hard and walked slowly with him out to the town car that was waiting for him. When he was situated in the back seat, she leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. “Promise me you’re going to listen to the doctors and take care of yourself.”
He chuckled. “You sound like Sylvia.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“But…about Brody…”
“Does he know you’re here?” she asked.
“No. I didn’t tell anyone I was coming to see you.”
She smiled. “Then let’s keep it that way.” And with a wink, she waved to him. “Go get some rest. Everything is going to be fine.”
And as she watched him pull away, she finally felt like it would be.
It was late and Brody felt like he could barely keep his eyes open.
The good news was that his father was home and his doctors predicted a full recovery. It had been a huge weight on his shoulders as he spent the last two weeks putting out fires at the office with everyone in a state of panic over his father’s health and what it meant to the future of the company.
All he wanted was a hot shower and about fourteen hours of sleep. Thank God it was Friday and he could possibly achieve both of those things.
But when he pulled into the driveway, he froze.
There were lights on in his house.
And he never left the lights on–not even on a timer.
Slowly he climbed from his car and made his way to the front door. There was no way he could see inside and he prayed if someone had broken in, that they’d at least have the decency to be gone by now. But just in case they didn’t, he pulled out his phone and was ready to call 9-1-1 if needed.
The first thing he noticed was the smell.
Delicious.
The second was the woman standing in the kitchen.
Beautiful.
Leanna’s smile was hesitant as she stepped around the island to greet him. “I hope you don’t mind that I’m here.”
There were so many things he wanted to say, but the sight of her was enough to practically bring him to his knees with relief. He dropped his satchel on the floor and didn’t even blink at the crash of his laptop in his haste to get to her. His hands cupped her face before he leaned in and captured her lips for the kiss he’d been aching for.
She clung to him even as he held her tight and he continued to kiss her until it was almost painful. He poured everything he had into it and when they finally broke apart, breathless, all he wanted to do was dive in and taste her again.
So he did.
After a minute, Leanna was the one to break the kiss and her laughter was one of pure joy. “That was some greeting!”
His hands were still on her face and he couldn’t get enough of looking at her. “Why didn’t you tell me you were here? I would have been home much sooner.”
Taking his hands in hers, Leanna led him over to the sofa and gave him a small shove to make him sit. “It looks like you haven’t been home in a week. And besides, I wanted to surprise you. I figured now that your father was home and it was the weekend, that you might finally get a chance to relax.”
A few minutes ago that was all he wanted to do, but now that she was here, he had other things in mind.
But the serious look on her face told him to wait.
Sitting down beside him, she twisted to face him. “How are you doing?”
Rubbing his hand over his face, he fought off a yawn. “Honestly? I’m exhausted.”
“Have you eaten? I mean, I know it’s after ten, but did you have dinner?”
He shook his head.
Leanna rose and held out a hand to him. “Follow me.” She led him to the kitchen and pointed for him to sit at one of the stools. “I made some creamy corn chowder; I just need to heat it up. But if you want something more with it, I also brought with me some freshly-roasted turkey, avocado, swiss cheese, and sourdough bread for sandwiches.”
It was almost enough to make him weep with gratitude. “Can I say yes to both?” he asked with a small laugh.
“You certainly can.” She started to move away but then stopped. “Why don’t you go and grab a shower while I get everything ready?”
He stood and kissed her again. “You’re perfect, do you know that?”
All she did was blush and give him a playful push toward the bedroom to send him on his way. As he predicted, the shower was amazing and did wonders for his overall well-being and even though he could have stayed in there for at least another twenty minutes, he forced himself out because he knew she was waiting for him.
In his closet, he pulled out a pair of pajama pants and a t-shirt and quickly towel-dried his hair before he stepped back out into the bedroom. For the first time in weeks, he was home. And not just physically, but in every sense of the word.
Leanna was here and wherever she was felt like home.
This house had been everything to him–his little empire that he’d made for himself–but without her, it meant nothing. For all the times he talked about the importance of having space and having his breathing room, without her there, it wasn’t worth having.
It shamed him that she had been the one to come to him. Not a day went by when he hadn’t thought of her and tried to find a way to go see her but it seemed like every obstacle in the world was in his way. And on top of that, he was embarrassed by the way he behaved, the way his family behaved, and the fact that she was put in that position at lunch. So, he’d been a coward and stayed away.
And regretted it with every fiber of his being.
So as he walked back into the kitchen and found her putting food out for him, he knew he needed to say what he felt before anything else.
“Hey, how was your shower?”
Gently, he grasped her shoulders. “Can you sit for a minute?”
“But…your food…”
“It’s okay,” he said, and once she was sitting, everything sort of just came out. “I am a coward, Lea. A horrible, horrible coward.” Her eyes went wide but he didn’t let that stop him. “From the moment we met, you have done nothing but give and I’ve done nothing but take. And yet…here you are…taking care of me.”
“Brody…”
He shook his head. “I have no excuse for not coming to see you in person. It may have been late or an inopportune time, but I should have come.” Raking a hand through his damp hair, he continued. “Being with you was never about a promotion or about polishing my reputation. You and I both know why we spent time together that first weekend, but after that it was simply about you and me and the fact that everything about you calls to me. Everything.”
She blushed and he took that as a good sign.
“I thought I knew everything I wanted for my life but it wasn’t until I met you that I realized how shallow and empty it all was. Then I brought you here and…everything fit.” His heart began to race and he knew his voice was a little shaky, but he didn’t stop. “For the last few weeks, I came home and felt lost and empty. Everything here felt cold and foreign. Then I came home tonight and it was like…warm and welcoming and so much more than I ever could have imagined.”
Slowly, he walked around the island until he was standing beside her. “I never understood what love was but that was because I hadn’t met you. You, my sweet, beautiful girl, are everything that love is. I’m sorry I didn’t see it sooner. I’m sorry I took it for granted.” Reaching out, he caressed her cheek and watched as her eyes filled with tears and hoped they were ones of happiness. “Leanna Baker, I love you so damn much. Please forgive me for not being the man you deserve and know I’m going to work hard every single day to be better. You are everything to me and I don’t think I can go through anot
her day without you.”
“Oh my goodness,” she whispered as she reached up and gently touched his face. “I don’t even know what to say.”
“Say you forgive me and that you still love me. Tell me I haven’t ruined this because I need you so much. Right now. Tonight. Forever.”
She was shaking her head as her tears freely flowed. “I do love you. I don’t think I could ever stop. And I wouldn’t be here right now if I hadn’t forgiven you. Now you better kiss me because I need that more than anything.”
They were the best words anyone had ever spoken to him and this time when he leaned in to kiss her, it was slow and sweet–full of love.
Reluctantly, he broke the kiss and rested his forehead against hers. “You own my heart.”
“That’s a good thing, because you own mine,” she said softly, kissing him one more time before stepping away. “But please have something to eat before the soup gets cold.”
His stomach chose that moment to growl loudly so he knew he needed to do as she asked. “Are you going to have anything with me?”
“I ate earlier. This is all for you. What can I get you to drink?”
“Believe it or not, a hot cup of tea sounds about perfect right now.”
“For me too.”
It was crazy how hungry he was and he felt bad about how he was so focused on his meal while Leanna talked to him about a wedding cake she was designing.
“I’m telling you, this bride has been a dream to work with. I wish they could all be like her. More often than not, they’re like my cousin.” She shuddered.
“Speaking of your cousin,” he said, wiping his mouth with a napkin. “It appears that the wedding is off.”
“No!”
Nodding, he told her, “Unfortunately–or should I say, fortunately–it is. Travis came to see me today and told me.”
“Oh, wow. Charlene must be devastated!”
He winced slightly and then started to laugh. “I’m not quite sure devastated is the right word. Furious seems a better fit.”
Leanna let out a small laugh and then stopped herself. “What happened?”
“It’s a long story and there are so many other things I’d like to talk to you about tonight. Would it be horrible if I told you about it tomorrow?”
She reached out and squeezed his hand. “It’s fine. Although I should probably go in and change it on my schedule. I blocked out that entire weekend sort of like the engagement party just because I knew she would make me crazy up to the last minute.”
When she went to reach for her phone, Brody stopped her. “Don’t. Not yet. Maybe we can plan a little getaway for that weekend.”
A slow smile played at her lips. “Ooh…a getaway, huh? Like maybe to the coast for the weekend?”
This girl…
And because he was unable to resist, he leaned forward and kissed the tip of her nose. “If you were your cousin you would have immediately asked if we could go to London or Hawaii. God, I love you.”
Her giggle made him smile. “Well, that’s just not the way my brain works. I’m not looking for anything extravagant, as long as we’re together.”
And damn, that was such an unassumingly sexy statement.
Pushing his dinner dishes aside, he stood and held out his hand to her. “My plan for when I got home was to take a hot shower–which I’ve done–and crawl into bed.” Stepping in close, he kissed the sweet spot behind her ear that always made her shiver. “And I’d love nothing more than to crawl into bed with you.”
Her head slowly fell back as she let out a low hum. “I thought you’d never ask.”
His steps were slow and his exhaustion was starting to catch back up with him, but he fought it off. In the bedroom, Leanna turned to face him and slid her hands under his shirt and helped him take it off. Her warm breath on his chest felt so good. He anchored one hand in her hair and simply enjoyed the way her soft lips played across his skin. It seemed like far too long since she touched him like this. Next thing he knew, his pants were gone and he was kicking them away.
“Okay, sleepy man, crawl under those sheets,” she urged quietly and it took him a minute to realize what was happening.
“Wait…I thought…I wanted to…”
One slim finger covered his lips. “And we will. In the morning. You look like you are in desperate need of sleep.” The whole time she was talking, she was helping him into the bed and covering him. When she moved to the foot of the bed and slowly undressed, Brody almost hated how heavy his eyes felt.
But it was all worth it when she climbed in beside him and curled up in his arms, her head on his shoulder.
His favorite sleeping position.
And as much as he wanted to protest and roll her over and make love to her, Leanna was right. Tomorrow was another day and as cheesy as it sounded to someone like him, tomorrow was definitely the first day of the rest of their lives.
Together.
Never before had he been so excited and happy about what lay ahead and he couldn’t wait to start making plans. Because from here on out, Leanna was his main priority. Everything else could take care of itself.
He fell asleep with a smile on his face and slept better than he had in a long time.
He woke up with a smile on his face as well.
Leanna was slowly kissing her way down his body and it was the world’s greatest alarm clock. His hands tangled in her hair as he chanted that he must be dreaming.
Then she did things to him that let him know he was very much awake.
He would gladly look forward to waking up every day if it started out like this morning.
Later, when they were both breathless and a little sweaty, he couldn’t help but tell her how he felt. “I love you, Leanna. I missed you so much.” He hugged her close. “I hated being here without you.”
“Oh, stop. You’ve always said how much you love your solitude and all your space here.”
“It felt stifling here without you,” he said gruffly, kissing her forehead. “Sometimes it felt as if I couldn’t breathe because I missed you so much.”
“I was never far away,” she said quietly.
“I know. I’ll never be able to apologize enough for that.”
“Brody, I don’t want you to keep apologizing. We both could have reached out sooner. The important thing is that we’re here now, right?”
He nodded. “It is. And from this point on, I don’t want us to be apart like that. Not ever again.” Pausing, he sat up a little. “I’d really like it if…if you moved in with me.”
Leanna sat up slowly and looked at him warily. “Are you sure?”
“Of course I’m sure. I wouldn’t have asked if I wasn’t, would I?”
“Well…”
“Well…?” he mimicked, teasing. “What does that mean?”
“It means I don’t want you trying to overcompensate for anything. There were some extenuating circumstances and as much as I hated it, I think the time apart was a good thing. It means we can move forward with a little more clarity.”
It made sense, but…
“I’m not trying to overcompensate, Lea. I’m asking you because I want you here with me. I want us to live together. I want to come home every day and know that I’m going to see you–that I’ll be able to have dinner with you on nights that neither of us are working late, and we’ll get to sit and watch TV together before crawling into bed.” He smiled at her. “I love the thought of your beautiful face being the last thing I see before I go to sleep.”
“Oh, my goodness! You are getting really good at all this sweet talk!” Leaning in, she kissed him. “I love it.”
“And speaking of sweet…you know what I’m in the mood for?” he asked silkily.
She moved in even closer. “Mmm…what?” She kissed his neck and then nipped at his jaw.
“Cupcakes,” he said, trying to keep a straight face. “I noticed that there were cupcakes out on the island last night but I got too full and it was too late
to have any and…”
A pillow hit him in the face as Leanna started to laugh. “You have me naked and thinking of another round of sex and you’re thinking of cupcakes?”
The pillow hit him again and he started laughing with her.
“I can’t believe I’m sitting here all turned on and you want cake!”
The third time the pillow hit, he caught it and quickly tossed it aside before playfully pinning his girl down.
Life with her was never going to be boring, but it was certainly going to be sweet.
Epilogue
The secret ingredient is always love.
Two months later…
“Oh, good grief. Where is this place?” Leanna murmured. She had circled the private airport three times and couldn’t seem to find the building she needed. It was getting late and these cupcakes needed to be delivered by two o’clock. Then she had to rush home because she and Brody were heading to the beach for a week. It was going to be glorious.
If only she could find where she was supposed to make this darn delivery!
On the fourth time around, she finally saw the small hangar and the entrance to the attached parking lot.
“Finally.” She parked and took a moment to compose herself and make sure she looked okay. Her hair was up and she was in her usual delivery uniform of black slacks and a white blouse, but she added a touch of lipstick before getting out of the car. After all, this was apparently a surprise for the owner of the private jet and she figured she should do her best to look as put together as possible.
Grabbing the two boxes from the back of her car–it seemed silly to take the big refrigerator van for such a small delivery–she put a smile on her face and walked through the door. She paused when she stepped inside because it looked like a high-end office–mahogany desks and counters, tasteful artwork on the walls, marble floors…it certainly didn’t look like any airplane hangar she’d ever seen.
But then again, she’d never seen any except on TV, so…
There was a woman about her own age standing behind the counter. “Ms. Baker?” she asked.
With This Cake: A Meet Me At The Altar Novel Page 22