Irresistible Forces (McKingley) (9 page)

After they had dried and dressed, he grabbed her hand as she went to move by him. Tugging her close to his chest, he wrapped his arms around her.

“What?” she asked.

“Thank you,” he murmured against her lips. He dipped his head and stole a kiss. Lord, he could kiss this woman forever. She tasted so amazing, it was like a drug he couldn’t ever get enough of.

“Humph. I think you should make us some dinner.”

“I think you’re right. You go back to watching you fashion show and I’ll whip it up.”

“Fashion show?”

“The television was playing some kind of fashion thing when I got home.”

“Ah, well I honestly have no clue. I hadn’t planned on watching anything, just turned it on for the noise.”

He nodded. “Okay.” Another kiss. “I’ll be in the kitchen.”

He stood in the middle, unsure of what to make. Opening his freezer, he nodded at the sight of some frozen pizza. It had been a while since he’d had that and it would do. Once he’d turned on the oven, he pulled out the pizza and placed it on a cookie sheet.

While waiting for it to heat, he went and set the table.

“Dining on the fine china, I see,” Deyon spoke from the doorway.

He looked at the paper plates sitting on the table and nodded. “You got it. Nothing but the best for my girl.”

She wrapped her arms around him. “Is that what I am, Leonardo? Your girl?”

He rotated so they were face to face. “Have I not made that clear yet?”

She gave him a sassy grin. “Sometimes we like to hear it more than once.”

“Noted.”

They watched
Jeopardy!
as they ate, having forgone the table to eat on the couch. They played along with the contestants on the TV. Leo won in the end but only because he’d wagered more on final than she had.

“You’re ruthless,” she said.

Readjusting himself on the couch so he could see more of her, he swirled the rest of his wine in the glass before drinking it. “Yes. I can admit it. I like to win.”

She pointed a finger at him. “So do I, just so you know. Don’t get used to it.”

He grinned at the challenge and said, “We’ll see.”

She sipped her own drink then shrugged. “We’ll see how well you do when the stakes are higher. Like strip Jeopardy.”

He almost choked. “Strip Jeopardy?”

“Sure. What you’ve never played?”

“You have?” One eyebrow rose when he asked that question.

“My turn to ask the questions, Sheriff. Besides, you can turn any game into strip whatever, so long as you have the requirements.”

“And those would be?”

She leaned closer and swiped her tongue over her lips. “Willing participants.” Deyon moved back to her original spot. “And I think we have those, unless I’m mistaken.”

God, she was a tease. “Oh no. We have willing participants.”

“Good. Then that’s all we need.”

Christ, he was ready now. “So, tell me.
Have
you played it before?”

She got to her feet and flashed him a sexy smile. “Wouldn’t you like to know.”

Yes, he would. She went to the kitchen and came back with a plate of cookies.

“Deyon?”

“Hmm?” She bit into one and moaned in bliss, which nearly derailed his thought.

“Answer me.”

Deyon watched Leo as she chewed on the chocolate chunk and macadamia nut cookie. He was so fun to rile. She’d seen that spark of jealousy when he’d asked her the first time.

She shook her head and took another bite. If she were honest with herself, she liked seeing it. He crossed his arms and glared. She licked a final bit of chocolate from her thumb and smirked at the answering flare of heat in his eyes.

“No.”

“No you haven’t played?”

“No, I’m not answering you.” A low rumble escaped him and she grinned. “Are you going to handcuff me and have your wicked way until I break?” She batted her eyes and held out her hands, wrists together. “Be gentle.”

“No, you’d like that too much.” The corners of his mouth twitched as he tried to hold back his smile.

“Damn straight.”

“How about I take away your weapons?”

She narrowed her eyes at him, suddenly no longer so amused. “Sheriff or not, that wouldn’t be in your best interest to attempt.”

“So protective of your weapons.”

She reached for another cookie. “Like you’re protective of your family jewels. Take mine, and I’ll take yours.”

She would swear his face went a few shades lighter and he shifted his weight on the couch to protect his balls—it had to be instinctive. “Why do I think you aren’t joking?”

“Because I don’t joke about my weapons.”

“Anyone tell you, you are a bit too obsessed with weapons?”

She just waved him off. “Whatever. A girl has to have a hobby, you know.”

“Collecting weapons like you do isn’t a hobby.”

“Would it be so strange if it was a man’s collection?”

He thought about it and shook his head. “Probably not. I’m just saying, Deyon, one doesn’t meet many famous models who love weapons as you do.”

“That’s because I’m unique. And I’m not a model anymore.”

He nodded. “That’s true. Although some would say you were special.”

She crossed her arms and sneered. “Why doesn’t it sound like a good thing when you say it?”

Leo batted his eyes at her and shrugged with innocence she didn’t buy for a second. “No clue.”

“Whatever.”

She watched him eat a cookie and found herself mesmerised by the working of his throat when he swallowed. The silence, which lingered between them, was comfortable and neither of them rushed to fill it. That was another reason she liked Leonardo so much—they didn’t
have
to have conversation going. They were relaxed enough with one another to have silence.

“Want to watch a movie after we clean up?” he asked a while later.

“What’d you have in mind?” She got up from the couch and took the cookies while he got the remaining dishes from dinner.

“I don’t know. Something mindless that I don’t have to think on. So no drama or documentaries.”

While he loaded the few items that actually had to be washed in the dishwasher, she returned to the living room and opened his television stand to see what movies he had that she wanted to see.

She settled on one of the
Lethal Weapon
movies and soon they were cuddled on the couch watching Sergeants Murtoch and Riggs as they worked their jobs. Leo fell asleep and she covered him with a blanket before she left. She would have loved to stay with him, but she had a buyer coming in early in the morning and wanted to get home, since she didn’t have her outfit here.

She drove home then. As she parked her car and headed for the front door, she glanced over to where Arissa used to live. It was completely dark there and she sighed heavily. She missed her friend. She didn’t even bother looking at Jackson’s side—he was working the overnight shift at the hospital this week.

She focused back on Arissa’s apartment door. She’d not seen her friend since she’d told her she was moving. Deyon shook her head. She’d been so busy with work or with Leonardo, nothing else had seemed to matter. Something she needed to rectify.

Inside, she ran herself a bath and groaned in ecstasy when she submerged in the hot water. With a glass of wine beside her and some soft music playing in the background, she relaxed then got out when she began to doze.

She slept well that night and was up before her alarm went off. After a light breakfast, she made her way to her Audi and slipped behind the wheel. She drove to her business and let herself in. Not much later, another worker joined her and they got everything set up for when the buyer arrived.

It went well and she was happy despite being tired. Meeting with a buyer always stressed her and made her a bit exhausted. The unknown, the worry, it all played a part. Thankfully, this one went off without a hitch.

“Thanks for all your help, Susanna,” Deyon said as she and her employee put things away in the storage area. Sounds from the front filtered back, alerting her to the fact her store was again busy. She loved that noise.

“It was my pleasure. I’m so glad it went well.”

Susanna was a larger woman who had started running the register to help make ends meet. That was five years ago. Now she could do anything in the store and had people who would come in just to talk to her.

Deyon squeezed her shoulder as she walked by with some fabric bolts. It didn’t take them long and the back room was back to the organised chaos she was used to seeing.

“Let’s go to lunch,” she said.

Susanna looked at her. “Us?”

Deyon nodded. “Yes. We’ve been here all day and I don’t know about you, but I could use some food.”

“Okay.”

They grabbed their purses then walked outside. The day was cooler than normal for the time of year but still extremely comfortable. “Where to? Milton’s?”

“Sounds good to me. I haven’t been there in a while.”

Milton’s was a nice family restaurant, which had good food and friendly staff. Two must-haves, in her estimation. It was within walking distance of her shop and was one of the oldest establishments in town.

The women walked and chatted. They entered Milton’s and Deyon smiled in contentment—she loved it here. They had bread bowls to die for, huge hamburgers and pasta that made her wonder if she hadn’t taken a left and ended up in Italy. That wasn’t even getting her started on the desserts.

* * * *

Things went along smoothly for the next two weeks. She finally tracked down Arissa and was now on her way over to see her friend. Just the two of them, no Jackson, no Leo and since Deiter was still overseas, no him.

She pulled into the drive of her friend’s new home and nodded her head as she took it in. A typical, southwest, adobe style home. Nothing overstated. Just a very nice one storey. After shutting off the engine, she climbed out and headed for the door.

“Hey, stranger,” Arissa said swinging the door open after she’d knocked. “Come on in. Have to forgive the mess, I’m still unpacking. Work hours seemed to have doubled recently.”

“Here”—Deyon thrust the basket at her—“a housewarming gift.”

“You didn’t have to do that, but thank you. Come on, I’ll give you a tour.”

After she’d taken a tour of the four-bedroom home, they sat at the dining room table and ate fajitas accompanied by some of the wine she’d brought.

“So tell me how you and Leo are doing?”

“Good, we’re good.”

“I’m glad to see you two together. Always thought you would be a good match for him.”

“Really? Why’s that?”

“You’re good for him. He’s happy with you, and some days I’d wondered if he would ever allow himself to be.”

She smiled softly at Arissa’s candid answer. “Now Dimitri needs to get a woman.” She shrugged. “Or a man.”

Arissa choked on her wine. “Oh…wow, yeah, no. He’d be after women.”

“He’s not settled down.”

“You hadn’t either, until Leo. Didn’t mean you wanted another woman.”

That was true. “Point taken.” They ate in silence until she finished. “So, how is Deiter doing over there?”

A wistful look crossed Arissa’s face. “He’s doing good. I miss him, but hopefully he should be home soon.”

“Do you get to talk to him every day?”

“No. We try, but it’s not working out that way.”

She could hear the hurt in her friend’s voice. Reaching out, she squeezed her hand. “I’m so sorry.”

She shrugged. “It’s okay. Better than when we separated after the cruise and I knew nothing. At least I get text messages from him and phone calls, even if we can’t coordinate enough to be on Skype. I just hope he comes home soon.” She took a deep breath. “But this isn’t supposed to be about me and my moping about. I want to know more about you and my big brother.”

“Want the sordid details?” she teased.

“Eww, no. I don’t even want to think of my brother doing such things. Has he gotten you any weapons?”

She laughed. “Are you kidding? Your brother wants to take my collection from me. Says they’re too dangerous to have in the house. Well, too dangerous for me, anyway.”

Arissa rolled her eyes. “Don’t let him fool you. He’s really very impressed by the collection.”

“Really?”

“Oh yes. I’ve heard him talking about it for a long time. Somehow he even knows when you get new pieces.”

She leant back and crossed her arms. “Has he now? Hmmm, I think I’ll have to check on that next time I see him.”

“Just don’t tell him you heard it from me.”

Deyon laughed again. “Right, I’ll tell him Dimitri told me.” She got up from the table and said, “Put me to work. What can I do to help?”

“No dessert?”

“Yes, just not yet. I have to let this settle first.”

Arissa got up as well and waved to her. They headed to the farthest room to the left—one she assumed would be a guest room.

“The boxes marked ‘curio’ all have to be unloaded into the cabinets throughout the house. Those two boxes are for the one by the picture window in the living room.”

“I’ll take those. You want them how they were set up in your apartment?”

“Yes, please.”

The women worked until all the cabinets had been filled and the boxes broken down and piled near the door to go out with recycling. Then they headed to the kitchen again and heated up some brownies, topped them with French vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of fudge.

“Thanks for stopping by, Deyon,” Arissa said around a bite of her brownie.

“You’re my friend and I’ve missed you.”

She was about half done when her cell rang and she got up to answer it. “Hello?”

“Hey, beautiful.”

Leo. Her heart picked up its pace.

“Hey, yourself. What are you doing?”

“Well I came to your house to see you. Where are you? Are you still working this late?”

“No. I’m with your sister.”

“Arissa?”

“Yes. We had dinner, put some things away and are eating dessert now.”

“Okay. Have fun. I’ll be here waiting for you.” A short pause. “Naked.”

He ended the call and she did too, a bit out of breath at the visual he’d left her with. Arissa was chuckling when she sat back down.

“What?”