by L. P. Dover
“Ensley, there you are,” Jordan interrupts.
Ensley tears her gaze away from mine. “What is it, Jordan?”
“The ice sculpture is melting into the cake. The fondue fountain is burning the chocolate. I can’t find the catering manager. The champagne fountain is overflowing.” Jordan throws her hands up in complete exasperation.
Ensley looks at me and I tell her to go. It’s her company, her job. I have to respect that and knew she would have to work some of the night. I just had no idea everything would go to hell in a hand basket as soon as I started spilling my guts.
I lean over the railing and look out over the city. Many times, the media conglomerates from New York City and Los Angeles have tried to buy Damien and I out or have come to use with proposals to merge and move to either city. Each time we’ve said no and worked to make our company bigger and better. The day we landed the Panthers broadcasting contract was huge but made sweeter when we signed the deal for the Hornets. Damien and I realized we don’t need the big city because what we have here is perfect.
“How’d she take it?” Damien mimics my stance.
“Don’t know, she got called away.”
“How do you think she took it?” he rephrases his question.
I shrug. “The other night at her house, we kissed. I think if I would’ve put more moves on her, we would’ve ended up in bed or fucking in her hot tub. I like her a lot and I think she likes me. The question is, does she like the guy behind the mask more.”
Damien looks over his shoulder at the party. “You can have your pick of single women in there. Hell, even some of the married ones. Are you sure the party planner is the one?”
I turn and lean my back against the railing. Damien’s right, we’re surrounded by Charlotte elite, but it’s Ensley, who is busy working to make sure my event goes off without any issues that catches my attention. From where I am, she looks calm, cool, and collect. She’s not frazzled or freaking out because something isn’t going her way.
“Without a doubt, Ensley Anderson is the one for me.”
“So, what are you going to do?”
“Besides wait for her response to what I’ve just admitted?” Damien nods. “I’m going to woo the fucking shit out of her if I have to.”
He slaps me on the shoulder. “Good luck, my friend. I think you’re both amazing and would really like to have her around more.”
“Me too, Damien. Me too.”
Nine
Ensley
He knew the whole time.
I don’t know how I’m supposed to feel right now. In a way, I’m flattered and intrigued, and slightly pissed I got pulled away from him. Of all nights for Jordan not to be able to handle things on her own. My heart is beating out of control and my patience is wearing thin. I want to get back to Owen. It takes me a while to find the catering manager and to get things sorted out. We moved the ice sculpture away from the cake, the champagne fountain was overfilled so we fixed that, and the fondue was burning because there wasn’t enough chocolate in it. Once everything was fixed, the auction had already started. Everyone was at their tables, including Owen. The seat beside him that’s supposed to be mine is now filled with a busty blonde.
A ping of jealousy spikes in my gut, but I stand back with Jordan as all of the amazing gifts are auctioned off. Jordan leans in close. “Did I interrupt something between you and Owen?”
She has no clue he’s my mystery man. “Just a little,” I whisper. “Remember my mystery man from the gala a while back ago?”
Her brows furrow. “Yeah. What does that have to do with Owen?”
All I do is stare at her and she slaps a hand over her mouth. “Oh my God, are you serious? Owen Jameson—is your that guy?”
I nod. “Yep. And the same guy I slept with at the Halloween ball. He found me there too.”
Jordan’s eyes light up and she squeals under her breath. Some of the guests turn their heads to look at us, and we both smile. “This is amazing,” she whispers back. “What are the chances of that?”
“Pretty good, as a matter of fact. After our first night together, he found out who I was. That’s why we were called in to plan the Halloween party.”
Jordan’s gaze averts over to Owen. “Sneaky bastard. I think it’s romantic. He has tons of producer friends here. Maybe they’ll turn your little saga into a movie.”
I roll my eyes. “No, thank you. What I really want to do is talk to him. He confessed everything right before you drug me away. I haven’t been able to speak to him about it.”
Jordan blows out a heavy sigh. “Dear God, he probably thinks you’re pissed.” She nudges me with her elbow. “Go talk to him. Tell him you’re not angry.”
I can’t pull him away from the event. “I will when the auction’s over.” Which feels like it’s going to take an eternity. I think I’ve known it was Owen for a while. Every time I heard his voice, it’s like I knew. And not to mention, the times we’ve touched. I’ve only gotten that electric spark with one man.
The charade is finally over.
The auctioneer goes through all the motions and as each second passes, I find myself more and more impatient. I want to know what’s going through Owen’s mind right now. Every time he starts to look back at me, someone snags his attention. Whether it’s stopping by his table to shake his hand or to talk to him. He’s a popular man. This is his night and his event. I don’t want to take him away from any of it.
Once the auction’s over, everyone stands and mingles around the room. I’ve lost sight of Owen from all the people. Jordan pushes me toward the crowd. “Go find him. I’ll handle everything else here.”
I stare at her questioningly. “Sure about that?”
She waves me off, her expression sheepish. “Okay, I’m sorry I have horrible timing. I promise I won’t interfere this time. Now go.”
All I want to do is find him. There are so many people it’s hard to get through without bumping into someone. I also don’t want to seem rude. Taking my time, I smile at everyone as I pass.
“Ms. Anderson,” Damien calls out from behind me. My impatience grows thinner, but I turn around and smile. Damien walks up to me with an older gentleman beside him with combed over white hair and wearing an awfully expensive designer tuxedo. Damien flourishes a hand in the man’s direction. “Ensley, I’d like for you to meet Simon Jennings. He’s a well-known music producer in New York.”
“Hello,” I say, extending my hand to him. “It’s nice to meet you.”
Simon shakes my hand. “The pleasure is all mine, Ms. Anderson.”
Damien pats Simon’s shoulder. “My friend here wants to hire you for some party planning coming up soon.”
Simon nods at me. “If that works for your schedule.”
“Of course,” I reply excitedly. “We will make it work. I look forward to it.”
Simon’s grin widens. “Perfect. I’ll get your information from Damien. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to find the man who outbid me for the Maldives vacation. I really wanted to win that one.”
Damien chuckles. “That man’s your brother.”
Simon nods. “Exactly. He knows I wanted it.” He winks at me before disappearing through the crowd. Damien moves up next to me and chuckles again. “The Jennings brothers are crazy. They always try to outbid each other. Last year, Simon won.”
“Thank you for introducing me to him. I really appreciate it.” I stand on my tip toes and search the crowd for Owen.
“No, problem.” He clears his throat. “Are you looking for Owen?”
“Yes. Do you see him?”
Damien points over toward the exit doors. “He’s all the way over there. Want me to call his cell?”
He starts to pull out his phone, but I place my hand over it. “No, I got this. I really need to talk to him.” Damien has a mischievous glint in his eyes, and I can’t help but wonder if he knows. “You know about me and Owen, don’t you?”
He smirks. “What part?”
“Everything. The masquerade, the Halloween party.”
Damien averts his gaze and laughs. “The man’s in love with you, Ensley.” When he turns back to me, I can see the seriousness on his face. “I thought he was crazy for doing what he did, but there was no stopping him. He would’ve done anything to get close to you.”
It warms my heart to hear it. Maybe I am a hopeless romantic after all. “He probably thinks I’m mad at him. He confessed everything to me, but then Jordan pulled me away.”
Damien’s eyes widen. “Seriously? Yeah, he’s probably freaking out right now.” Quickly, his eyes scan the crowd. “Dammit, he’s heading out. Hurry.”
Heart racing, I rush as fast as I can through the people without knocking anyone down. I can see Owen exiting the doors to the lobby and pressing the button for the elevator. When I finally make it out, he’s nowhere to be seen. The elevator door begins to close, and I step in its way. Owen’s eyes widen when I push my way in and press the button to close the doors. I don’t want anyone else in there with us.
“Where the hell do you think you’re going?” I say, glaring at him.
Owen sighs and runs a hand through his hair. “Trying to avoid this part right here. The last thing I wanted was for you to be angry with me. Guess I was giving you some space to think things through.”
“I don’t need space.” I press the stop button on the elevator, and it stops immediately. The alarm goes off and I smile as I wrap my arms around his neck. “The second you kissed me, I knew. I was waiting for tonight to tell you, but you beat me to it.”
His hands snake around my waist. “So, you’re not mad at me?”
I shake my head. “Not in the least. I can’t believe you did what you did just to get close to me.”
Owen pulls me in closer to his body. “I didn’t know how else to approach you. I’m glad you figured out it was me.”
I stare in his eyes, knowing they aren’t really green. “It would’ve been much easier if you weren’t wearing contacts. You know I love your gray and golden eyes.”
Chuckling, he slides a hand away from my waist and takes out the contacts, his true color staring back at me. “Better?”
“Much.”
He glances down at my lips. “What happens now?”
I slide my hands up to his face. “Well, for starters you can kiss me.” He grips my waist and quickly turns me to where my back is against the elevator wall. His lips close over mine with an urgency that makes everything inside of me tighten. I want more…so much more.
“How was that?” he asks, murmuring the words against my lips.
My breath comes out in rapid pants. “Oh, that was just the beginning.” I reach over and press the button to start the elevator back up.
A few seconds later, the doors open and Owen smiles. “So, what’s next? This is my floor. I could give you a tour of my place.”
Taking his hand, I pull him out of the elevator. “Maybe tomorrow. Right now, I only want to see your bedroom.”
He unlocks his door and closes it behind us, pushing his arousal into my body. “Are you sure this is what you want?”
His words make me smile. He asked me the same question on both the nights we slept together. “Yes,” I murmur whole-heartedly. “I want this and so much more.” Picking me up in his arms, he carries me to his bedroom and lays me down on his bed, his body covering mine. I run a hand down his cheek and brush my thumb over his lips. “It’ll be nice seeing your face when we make love.”
He nips my thumb and smiles. “I’m glad you’re not disappointed it’s me.”
I shake my head. “You’re everything I could ever want, Owen. I’m happy it’s you.”
“Things aren’t going to be same after this. Are you ready for that?” He kisses me and slides a hand underneath my dress and up my thigh.
Goosebumps fan out over my skin and I tremble with anticipation. “As long as I have you, I’m ready for anything.”
~ Halloween Night – 1 Year Later ~
Trick or treaters have come and gone, and I’ve eaten so much chocolate I feel a sugar high coming on. The night is just getting started though.
“Want a glass of wine?” Owen calls out from the kitchen.
I get the TV ready and wave a hand in the air. “Yes. Just bring the whole bottle.”
Owen chuckles. “I can do that.”
He sets the bottle of wine on the coffee table beside my many empty wrappers of Kit Kat bars. There’s a whole bucket of candy on the table with various chocolate bars and I handpicked all the Kit Kats out. Owen sits down and hands me the glass of wine, his eyes focused on the candy.
“Please tell me you didn’t eat all of the Kit Kats?”
I knew it was his favorite candy bar so I ate some of them and hid the rest just to mess with him. “Did you want some?” I ask, feigning innocence.
Owen sits back on the couch, looking bummed. “Well, damn. Guess I’ll just eat the Twix.” He’s talked about eating Kit Kats all day long. It takes all I have not to burst out laughing.
Reaching behind the couch pillow, I pull out a handful of his favorite treat. “Here you go.”
I set them in his lap, and he smirks. “I knew you wouldn’t eat them all. You love me too much.”
“That I do. And I also learned from last year. I had no clue you loved Kit Kats so much.”
Owen kisses the side of my head. “It made you happy to eat them all, so I was fine not having any.” I had eaten them all and felt bad, even though he says he didn’t care. He just liked giving me a hard time. That’s why I remembered to buy extra ones for this year. They happen to be my favorite too and I wanted to make sure we had plenty.
Picking up the remote, I press play to get our DVD started. Last year, we spent Halloween night eating candy and watching Ghostbusters and The Monster Squad. We decided to do it again this year. Halloween will always hold a special place in our hearts; it’s turned into our favorite time of the year.
The theme song for the Ghostbusters comes on, but Owen grabs the remote and presses pause. I look at him and over at the TV. “Why’d you stop it?”
Owen sets the remote on the table and kneels in front of me, taking both of my hands in his. “Because there’s something I want to ask you.”
My heart starts to race. “What is it?”
There have been many times I thought he’d pop the big question, but it never happened. Not that I’m in a hurry, but we’ve been together for a year now. Maybe it’s because my business has grown exponentially and we’ve both been super busy. Not only do Jordan and I plan parties in North Carolina, but I’ve had clients fly us both out all over the country to plan them as well. Owen comes with me every time. We turn the trips into mini vacations. It’s been a whirlwind year and I’ve loved every minute of it.
Owen looks up at me with those gray eyes of his I can never seem to get enough of. He squeezes my hands and smiles. “I wanted to ask you if you’d mind planning another event for me. This one is going to be huge and might take a little extra work, but I’m hoping you’ll agree to do it.”
“Of course. What kind of party is it?”
He lets one of my hands go and reaches into his back pocket, pulling out an exquisite diamond ring. “Well, it’s more like a wedding.” Eyes wide, I gasp. He holds the ring up and takes a deep breath. “I wanted to do this months ago, but I wanted the timing to be right. Halloween was a special time for us last year and I thought this would make it even more memorable.”
Tears stream down my cheeks. “Oh my God. This is perfect.”
Owen nods. “That’s what I thought too. We started a tradition last year with the Ghostbusters and The Monster Squad. I want to do this exact thing every year from here on out. I want it to be our tradition. But I what I want most is to remember all these times with you being my wife. I can’t imagine it any other way.” He slides the ring onto my finger. “Please say yes.”
All of the emotions hit me at once. I want to cry, laugh,
and dance all at the same time. I fling my arms around his neck and we both fall to the floor with me on top of him. “Yes,” I laugh. “You are completely and utterly stuck with me now.”
He winks. “I’m fine with that. Even if you are a Kit Kat thief.” He lifts a hand to my face and guides me down to his lips, kissing me gently. “Whenever you want to get married, I’m ready. Just name the date.”
“Tomorrow then,” I tease.
His eyes light up. “Let’s do it.”
I roll my eyes. As much as I’d love to get married quickly, it’s not what I’ve envisioned for myself. “Soon,” I reply. “I’m a party planner. My wedding is something I’ve dreamt of my entire life.”
“And I want it to be perfect,” he murmurs, caressing my cheek. “Then afterwards, we can start our family. I mean, come on, our Halloween tradition is amazing. What kid wouldn’t like binging classic movies all night?”
This makes me laugh. “Maybe until they get older and we’re not cool anymore. They’re not going to want to hang out with their parents on Halloween.”
Owen cups both my cheeks. “True, but at least, we’ll have each other. That’s all that matters.”
I press my lips to his. “Exactly.”
THE END!
Praise for A Date with a Turkey
This is a sweet and sexy story about overcoming the past and finding love with the help of some matchmaking parents.
—Gillek2
HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLY RECOMMEND TO ALL!
—Jennifer Pierson
Super cute, sweet, and fun enemies to lovers quickie!
—KindleKat64
We have wonderful witty banter, chemistry, romance, a cute young boy, meddling moms and am impromptu date that may be more than either one expected!
—Michelle McMullen
One
Maeve