A Test of Love: Interracial Erotic Romance (Chasing Love) (33 page)

I’d managed to avoid him for a whole week, until he called and demanded that we see each other. I’d obliged. Truth be told, every damn hour and day away from him suffocated me. It was like I couldn’t breathe or think. Why I enjoyed torturing myself, I would never know.

Maybe because I’m just so scared. Chase scares me. His love. His dedication. It. . .

None of that mattered. I’d invited him over for dinner with the intention of spoiling him. He deserved that at least, after I’d been so cold with my avoidance.

We had the whole apartment to ourselves.

Viv and Troy had still not returned to Oshane. They’d been too busy with the task of hiding Lucy from Benny. Dear old psychotic Dad had not been happy to go upstairs and find a dead Wendy in Chase’s arms. ’Benny had tried to attack Chase. Troy and several of his own guards had restrained him. He’d tried to attack Chase. And of course, Chase held a gun. Escalation into more violence had been so close, too freaking close. If I hadn’t rushed upstairs, embraced Benny, and calmed him down, who knows what would’ve happened?

“You always had a way with Benny, Jazz.” Troy told me once Benny left to catch Viv and Lucy before they got on the plane. “I don’t think anyone else could’ve calmed Benny down. That’s power, sis. Stop shaking. Don’t cry, baby girl. It’s okay. It’s all going to be okay.”

Troy didn’t lie, but he hadn’t necessarily told the truth. I caught the look in Benny’s eyes as he snarled at Chase. Benny wanted to kill him. There was no doubt that if given the chance, Benny would take Chase’s life and do it in the worst possible way.

Everything is not going to be okay. Not until Benny is. . .I don’t know. I can’t deal with that now. I’ll just have to take care of Benny myself, somehow get him to understand how important Chase is to me. And then I’ll deal with. . .Sherman.

Like Chase promised, my older brother Sherman was released. Troy immediately sent for him. For what reason I wasn’t sure. Viv was probably blowing her brains out with Troy, Sherman, and Lucy all around her.

Wherever they are.

Every time Troy or Viv called, they didn’t talk for long and never gave me their location. Not that I relished in our phone conversations. Troy was obsessed about discovering Benny’s friends’ identities. Viv went on and on about DNA and several theories on whether we were even siblings or not. She’d asked me to take a test with them to see. I had an appointment with the doctor Viv found, for next week. We all were sure Benny’s people monitored my phone line. Although he’d promised me that he wouldn’t hurt Lucy, neither I nor anyone else believed him. Viv never elaborated on what her mission was, but I knew she hoped to find a way for Troy and her to be together. I could sense it in her heartbroken voice as it traveled over the line.

I hope you two find a solution.

Chase clasped his silky fingers around my hand. “I have a team of people working on this time problem.”

“What?” I let him guide me past the line of people waiting to get into Jasmine’s.

“Time. You think I can’t buy it. I bet I can.”

“Oh, be quiet, Chase.”

“Money has a way of passing conventional limits. I’ve not given up. My team is putting a lot of research into purchasing time.”

“Well, I hope you at least pay them well.”

“I do my best, but I may have to add more. This space between us is killing me.” His joking smile cracked a little at the edges. It hurt me to see it.

I squeezed his hand. “I’m sorry. I just need—”

“Time,” he said through clenched teeth. “Yes. I’m aware of that. It seems I need time too.”

“Oh, really?” I raised my eyebrows. “You need time?”

“Yes. I need more time with you. Although I enjoyed that lovely dinner last week and the way I fucked you on every bit of space in your apartment. . .stop blushing. You loved it.”

“Your ego is insane.”

“It’s a well-earned ego,
tesoro
.” He stopped us before we could get to the entrance. Only three feet rested between us and the door. Gabe had guaranteed no waiting time for us. He wanted me to be the first customer to eat there.

I didn’t want to hold up the restaurant’s opening anymore. “What are you doing?”

“That dinner at your apartment wasn’t enough.”

“Then maybe you can come over for breakfast.”

He frowned.

“I could add a lovely brunch too. Maybe even a lunch on a nice sunny day.”

“
Tesoro
.” So much pain oozed out of that word.

“Don’t push this, Chase. I just need time. After everything we’ve been through, I’m sure you can understand.”

“That’s the problem. I don’t. You’re my everything, and you sit in that shitty little apartment—”

“Hey, my apartment rocks.”

“You deserve more.”

“I like my place.”

“I need you next to me. When I wake up in the morning, I need your body naked, wet, and right next to mine.”

My skin set on fire. I tried to breathe through the lust swirling in my body and rationalize the situation at hand. “Chase, just give me time.”

“No.”

“Okay. You don’t get to say no.”

“No.” It sounded with a dark growl. “You stay with me tonight.”

“Maybe and not at Willow Park.”

“It’s closed down. I have a hotel suite.”

“Why not just get a new place?”

“Because I want
you
to help me find it. You’ll be living there so you should have an opinion in the matter.”

I couldn’t ignore the fact that fear and lust battled within me, but deep down inside of my heart, there was so much love. A sort of giddiness came with the fact that he hoped we would live together.

Oh, god. What is he doing to me?

“Okay. Let’s just eat and enjoy Jasmine’s opening tonight.” I tried to pull him forward. “We can talk about all of this later.”

He wouldn’t budge. “No.”

“No, we’re not going to enjoy our evening or no, we won’t talk about this later?”

“No, you don’t get any more time or space or minutes and seconds away from me. No, I’m no longer going to be patient, understanding Chase. Hell, no! I’m now back to the jackass you met before, the very persistent and stubborn jackass who chased you all over the globe. No, you will not step into your shitty apartment again, not even to pack your things. By the way, a moving service is packing your items as we speak. No, I don’t care if you’re mad. No, I won’t go on probation. No, it’s not kidnapping because you’re mine. No, I won’t stop, and no, I’m not bloody sane when it comes to you. No and goddamn it, no.”

I swallowed in my fear. “That’s a lot of no’s.”

“I feel that amount was necessary.”

“So people are now violating my privacy and packing my things? This sounds like that whole kidnapping problem that we discussed in Italy.”

“You’ve had your space,
tesoro
. There won’t be any more.”

“But—”

“No.”

“Okay. Let’s just—”

“No.”

I closed my eyes and sighed. “Really?”

“No.”

Dear God.

He chuckled. “I think I’m starting to like this word. I see why you say it all the time. It’s a sort of finality with the word.”

“You’re insane.”

“Even more after falling in love with you.”

I opened my eyes. This man snared my heart from the very beginning. He caught me and never let go, no matter how much I begged and pleaded. Could I even truly fight him off? Could I ever leave him alone?

No, and hell, no.

“Okay. I want to take things slowly.” I held my hand up before he could protest. “Yes, I will move in with you, but. . .could we just take our time with the process. All of this scares me. I don’t know if I’m ready to be with you, and this whole thing with Benny and Lucy isn’t done yet. Plus, you’ll have to deal with Sherman eventually, just to get that out of the way.”

He formed his lips into a bold smile.

Dear God. His ego is inflating right before my eyes.

“Chase, I’m serious. We have lots of things to deal with. This isn’t just going to be some easy ride.”

“It never has been, but it’s me and you together. We’ll win because we have to, and of course, I don’t lose.”

“Well, non-losing narcissist and part-time kidnapper, this means that you have to stop hiding things from me.”

“I’m an open book.” He shrugged.

“What were in those two rooms at the house in Atrani?”

His smiled faded.

“Chase?”

“That’s not connected to anything that would deal with us. It’s my past, not
our
future.”

“Then tell me.”

Tight-lipped, he guided me forward. “Let’s enjoy the opening. I’m sure Gabe has many delicious surprises for you. Let’s just hope none of them force my foot to travel to the neither regions of his anus.”

“Oh, so now you’re hungry? That’s very convenient.”

“I can’t control my stomach. It has a mind of its own.”

“Sure, it does. Fine. We can eat now, but remember, before we buy a place or anything, I want to know what’s in those rooms and why you’re so scared to tell me.”

He avoided my gaze as the hostess held the door open.

“Chase, do you hear me?”

“Yes, we’ll discuss this later.”

“Now look who’s saying no.”

“That wasn’t a no. It was a later.”

“When is later?”

“Somewhere between me consuming your body and right before I place a ring on that empty finger.”

“It’s not empty.” I showed him my lucky copper ring. “I have a ring.”

He scrunched his face up in horror. “
That
is not a ring. It’s a cracked piece from a trumpet that somebody melted and looped around your finger. Please tell me you didn’t buy that.”

Benny had bought it for me and presented it at my high school graduation. I didn’t think it was a good idea to tell him that. “It’s always been special to me.”

“I’ve always assumed you lifted it off of a bum. It’s not nice to steal jewelry from the homeless.”

“Ha ha. It’s copper not brass and it was a gift.”

“It’s horrific.”

“You’re a freaking uppity person when it comes to fashion.”

“Says the person who complains about the quality of food at almost any place I take you to.”

“Not true and stop changing the topic.”

A grim shadow cast over his face. “I’ll tell you about the two rooms, one day. We’ll have to go back there, just promise me that. We go to Atrani and I take you into both rooms and. . .you give me the time to explain it all. . .and then you promise me you’ll understand.”

I didn’t like how it sounded. “Do you really think it’s that bad?”

“It’s just the truth. My reality and that’s something that many people can’t handle.”

“Have you ever given anyone the chance to handle your ‘truth’?”

“No. You’ll be the first. Not even Dawn knew.”

Tension built in my shoulders. “Okay. I’ll go back with you, and I’ll try to understand.”

“Thank you.”

“And, I guess if it is too bad—”

“No.”

“Really, Chase? You have no idea what I’m going to say.”

“Doesn’t matter.”

“I was going to say that if it is really that horrific, I would try to find a way to work with it. You know why?”

He grinned. “Because you’re addicted to my cock and the way I make you scream to God.”

I absolutely hate you.

“No, because
we
will not lose.”

“Oh, really? I think before we head to the table, we should check out what Gabe did to the bathrooms.”

“No more restaurant bathrooms. In fact, if ’it’s not a bathroom of a Michelin star restaurant in Paris, then that’s a big no.”

“Now who’s uppity?”

Holding a bouquet of sunflowers, Gabe walked up to us, dressed in a designer black suit. His smile sparkled as his gaze fell on my face.

“Look at him,” Chase said through clenched teeth. “He looks like he’s about to propose marriage to you. If he does, I’ll kill him.”

“Stop that.”

“And then I’ll take you into the kitchen and fuck you all over his delicious food.”

“Be good.”

“No.”

“Chase, stop that.”

“Hell no,
Tesoro
.”

I’ve created a monster.

For the final book in Chase and Jasmine’s romance,

check out
A Commitment to Love
in June 2014.

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