Beauty in His Bed (6 page)

He rose, fumbling for the light. It only confirmed his fears–he was alone. Amy was gone.

Pain tore through his chest, more than he would have thought possible after scarcely knowing her. What could he do? He could check with Monique, but he had a hunch she’d fled all the way to New York. Halfway across the country. What could he do to see her again? Could he ask her to come back, to live here?

Letting her run from his life wasn’t an option. He had to at least try. Pulling out his phone, he dialed Monique’s number.

“Where y’at?”

“Amy’s gone.”

Monique swore. He felt the same. Swallowing, he said, “Tell me her address in New York. I’m going after her.”

Chapter 6

Amy stepped into her apartment drained of energy. The flight had been torturous, a strange parody of the one she’d suffered only a few days ago. She was still heart sore, but this time not over Tim.

Tim… Funny how she hadn’t thought of him at all while in Seb’s arms. She should be grateful he’d been able to displace those sour memories, even if his comfort had been but temporary.
I should have left the morning after. Then I wouldn’t feel so shitty now.

She sighed, dropping her suitcase on the floor. It impacted with a surprisingly loud noise.
Good going, Amy. Way to wake the neighbors.
But at this point, she didn’t much care. She just wanted to sleep the day away. Heck, maybe the rest of her life, too.

“Amy?”

And the day just keeps getting better…

Amy glanced up, blinking her bleary eyes. “Hannah, what are you doing here? It’s five in the morning.”

The curvaceous blonde put her hands on her hips. “I came in before work to get the rest of Tim’s shit into the Dumpster. But what are
you
doing here? I thought you said you were coming back on Wednesday.”

Amy didn’t feel like arguing with her boisterous friend today. Rubbing her eyes, she said, “Look, I know what I said. But I couldn’t stay any longer, okay? I’m over Tim. One hundred percent. And now I just want to sleep.”

“Over Tim? After only two days?”

Amy retreated to the bedroom, but Hannah trotted after her. When Amy collapsed on the bed, her friend flicked on the light switch. “What, did you meet a guy?”

Ah, bright. Amy burrowed her face into the pillow. In a muffled voice, she replied, “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Oh, you did!”

“I said I don’t want to talk about it. It was just a one-night stand, okay?”

Hannah snorted. “Sure. And Colleen only wanted a one-night stand with Dan. You’re clearly a goner. Apparently, I’m the only one of the three of us who can actually handle casual sex.”

Amen to that.

Turning her face to the side, Amy pleaded, “Hannah, will you please just go? I’m tired.”

“Fine,” Hannah said, her voice resigned. It wasn’t as if she had just been dumped twice in the same week.

Seb didn’t dump you. You ran away.

Amy quieted that voice.

Unfortunately, she couldn’t do the same with her friend.

“I’ll leave, but we’re having a girl’s night on Thursday. No excuses. Tim’s kept you closeted away from us for
six months.
Away from your
cousin
, too. That’s just unhealthy. We’re going to go out and get drunk and dance on tables. And you can tell me all about this ‘one night stand’ you’re having.”

Amy groaned. She didn’t even have the energy left to speak. Fortunately, Hannah turned off the lights as she exited Amy’s apartment.

* * * *

Seb clutched the airport flowers in his hand as he stood poised to knock on Amy’s door. Some good Samaritan had let him into the building, but now that he was here, fear clogged his throat. What if she’d left because she simply didn’t like him? Maybe flying up had been a bad idea. He should have phoned instead.

Too late now. He was here, and he had to try. Gathering his courage, he rapped on the door.

Amy opened the door, dressed in voluminous grey sweats. Her auburn hair snarled around her head. Her eyes were puffy. From crying? He peered over her shoulder, but saw no one else in the apartment.

“Seb.” Her plump lips parted, but he couldn’t read her expression. Was she happy to see him?

He offered the flowers he’d picked out. “May I come in?”

For a minute, he feared she would turn him away. But then she stepped aside. Entering the apartment, he shut the door. He didn’t take his eyes off her. Just where did they stand?

“Why are you here, Seb?”

“Why’d you leave?” he countered. Feigning confidence, he adjusted the strap of his overnight bag, crossed his arms and leaned against the door.

Her tongue darted out to her lower lip. She didn’t seem inclined to answer. As much as he would like an explanation, he didn’t want to push her. He straightened.

“Are you fixin’ to invite me in, or what?”

Some of her spunk returned, a narrowing of the eyes. “You are in. What’s the bag for?”

“I figured, as you stayed by my house, I’d stay by yours.” He looked pointedly at the mat by his feet. “And you’ve got me fenced in here.”

She didn’t move, not even to speak a word. She seemed afraid to breathe, even. At least she hadn’t thrown him out yet. That was promising, wasn’t it?

“You look like you ain’t slept in days,
cher
.” Not complimentary, but the words slipped out without his permission. In an attempt to recover, he joked, “My fault, I know.”

“What do you want from me?” Amy asked, voice defeated. The question stabbed him in the gut.

A kiss. A lifetime.
But he sensed that she wasn’t willing to hear either of those answers right now. Had she even slept since leaving him? Dropping his bag, he herded her into the kitchen.

“Sit,
cher.
Let me fix you a little something.”

“You don’t have to do that,” Amy protested, but she sat.

He ignored her, choosing to rummage through her cupboards. Finding ground coffee, he started the coffee maker and fished out cups while it heated.

“Sugar’s in the yellow jar,” she said.

He shot her a smile in answer, but she still clenched her fists over the table. Like she didn’t quite trust him. She methodically picked apart the petals of the flowers he’d given her. If that signified the state of his relationship with her, they were in bad shape. After searching and failing to find a vase, he plucked out a tall glass and filled it with water. What kind of man didn’t bring home flowers for his girlfriend? The thought of Amy’s ex left a sour taste in Seb’s mouth. Rescuing the flowers from her grasp, he stripped away the plastic and slid them into the glass.

“You’re supposed to trim the ends,” Amy said. Her eyes no longer held that dull expression. Was she starting to warm to him again? Better not to ask.

Mustering a smile, Seb said, “Sorry. I don’t normally do that bit.” Finding the cutlery drawer, he pulled out a knife and sawed off the wet tips of the stems. By then, a quick glance showed that the coffee pot had filled.

After he poured coffee into both mugs and added sugar, he peered into the fridge. No cream. Pulling out the milk carton, he added a dollop to each mug. Then he brought the peace offering to Amy.

She gulped down a sip, burning her tongue, if he read her expression right. Why was she so nervous around him? They’d gotten along famously in New Orleans. He sat across from her.

The mug clinked as she placed it on the table. “I have to ask. Who phoned you?”

Seb felt his eyebrows knit together as he tried to understand her meaning.

Her fist balled beside the mug. Not a good sign. “Our last night together.” She met his gaze, but clenched her jaw. “The woman on the phone. Who was she? Your girlfriend?”

“Girlfriend?” The muscles in his shoulders loosened in a rush. “That was my mama.”

“Your mother.” From the way she stared at him, she either hadn’t thought of that possibility or didn’t believe him. He hoped for the former.

He reached out, laying his hand atop her tightly-clenched fist. Her skin was soft. He couldn’t resist stroking it with his thumb. “
Cher
, my mama ain’t always the most peaceful of folk, especially given the reason I ran out, but you should never feel threatened by her.”

Amy’s lips parted. Her tongue dipped out to moisten the seam. “Why exactly did you run out?”

Seb retracted his hand, wondering what to say. He opted for the truth. “I bailed her out of jail.” From Amy’s rapt attention and the way she opened her mouth, she had far more questions. He didn’t want to answer them, not yet. His family could be a lot to process, especially without Mama nearby to charm her. “Must we talk about this now?” he pleaded. “While I’m here, I’d rather speak of other things.”

With downcast eyes, Amy admitted, “I didn’t expect to see you again.”

“I didn’t expect you to run out on me in the middle of the night.”

Wrong thing to say. He was acting like a surly teenager. So she’d left. Now was the time to make amends, not rile her. But how was he supposed to do that? He’d been counting on the fact that she’d
want
to see him. This hostile behavior wouldn’t do.

On impulse, he said, “Let’s catch a show.”

“A show?”

“
Oui, cher.
Whichever you want. We’ll run by a restaurant, too.”

Her gaze fastened to him. Calculating. “Are you asking me on a date?”

The way she looked at him made him feel as though all his darkest secrets were spread out over the table. Shrugging to hide his discomfort, he muttered, “Yeah. We never had one in New Orleans.”

Amy brightened. Like a flower unfurling toward the sun. Her eyes lit with delight and her back straightened.
Soc au lait,
why hadn’t he asked before?

Leaning closer, she purred, “Why don’t we have a staying-in date? Watch a movie, order take-out. It’ll be fun.”

From the invitation in her voice, he sensed it would be very fun, indeed. Her lips beckoned, promising carnal delights. Even though he’d had her less than twenty-four hours ago, the need to taste her nearly brought him to his knees. He leaned in, about to meld their mouths.

A key twisted in the lock, followed by the sound of the door opening. Amy’s lips pursed in annoyance. “If that’s Hannah, I swear to God…”

Seb said nothing, but buried his disappointment. When she stood, he followed her into the front room.

As she saw the impromptu visitor, she deflated. Her shoulders hunched inward, like she was trying to hide. Dismay and insecurity painted her face. What a change from the vivacious, flirty woman of only a few moments before. This must be her ex-boyfriend.

Seb took the man’s measure. They stood roughly the same height, though the cap had about twenty pounds on Seb. Round, clean-shaven face. Messy blond hair. And the coldest expression Seb had ever seen.

He stepped forward, trying to shield Amy from the man. “What’s your business here?”

The man’s face twisted. “My business? This is my apartment.”

Clenching his fists, Seb shook his head. He didn’t want to overstep his bounds with Amy, but he didn’t want this heinous man to tread all over her, either.

Fortunately, she still had enough courage to speak, albeit in a small voice. “No, it’s not, Tim. The lease is under my name.”

Tim sneered. “Whatever. I wouldn’t want this shitty place, anyway. Even if you cleaned away your filth.”

Filth?
This guy had a loose screw. The apartment looked pristine to Seb.

Adopting a superior expression, Tim said, “I’m just here for the rest of my stuff.”

“I don’t have it.” From Amy’s tone of voice, she was on the verge of tears.

Tim’s face darkened. “You don’t
what?
” The bulky man stepped forward, fist clenched.

Seb met him halfway. “Lay a hand on her and you’ll draw back a nub.”

Unfortunately, the man didn’t appear overly intimidated. It would have done Amy good to see him that way. Despite Tim’s sneer, Seb didn’t back away.

Amy stepped forward, hovering to the side. “I don’t have your stuff, Tim. Hannah threw it all out.”

A quick glance to the side showed shame blooming across Amy’s cheeks.
Fix it.

Seb intended to.

Tim’s snarl resembled the twisted maw of a demon. “That spiteful bitch. I thought I told you to cut ties with her.”

Seb stepped close enough to brush shoulders with the despicable man. He put on his lawyer face. “Listen, cap. You don’t have the right to choose Amy’s friends. Anything you left behind, you forfeited. If you abandoned it in the apartment–which is under her name–it legally belongs to her.” When Tim continued to stare menacingly, Seb added, “Do you need me to repeat that in court, or what?”

“And just who are you?”

“Her boyfriend.”

Tim started to laugh, but stopped when he caught the murderous expression on Seb’s face. “Why would you be with someone like her?”