Her Way (5 page)

Lynn reached over and pulled Emma’s hands from her face. “That blush tells me differently.”

“I didn’t have sex with him, for Pete’s sake!” she hissed and then looked around. Luckily, no one seemed to notice her announcement—except her friends. They all looked to be fighting laughter. Sure, they probably thought it was hilarious. She finally got a guy home and couldn’t manage to score. Pitiful.

“Okay…no sex. But that doesn’t mean nothing happened. He looked quite comfortable standing in your foyer half dressed. Your idiot brother didn’t even fluster him. Now that is a worthy man, my friend.” Hannah nodded.

“It was mortifying. I brought him home and made him come in. Showed him around my empty house and ended up in the bedroom.” She groaned at the thought. “I got him in bed, all right. I kissed all over him
and
told him I thought Ana was right—I needed to get laid.”

Ana couldn’t hold back a chortle of laughter at that. Hannah shushed her as Lynn patted Emma’s hand, silently encouraging her to continue.

“Yeah, I kissed all over him and fell asleep on top of him.”

“You did not.” Lynn gasped.

“I believe it,” Hannah said. “She always was a sleepy drunk. So how did he happen to stay the night?”

“He said he didn’t want to wake me and figured if he stayed still for a few minutes, he could slip out then. Well, he fell asleep, too. Though I had no clue. I woke up to Mark and Matt banging on my door, headed downstairs and saw Will standing there. I thought we’d done it and I didn’t remember it.”

“And Mark being all demanding and shit didn’t help, I’m sure.” Lynn nodded.

“He was so rude! He was cursing at Will, demanding to know where I was. Urgh, he was a jerk. But Will was very sweet about all of it.” She smiled at her friends. “He made the girls and me breakfast.”

Ana narrowed her eyes and stared at her. “There’s more.”

Emma laughed at her friend’s confidence…and perception. “Well, I had the girls in my room, watching TV, and I took a shower while he made breakfast. He came up and brought me aspirin and juice. That was sweet, don’t you think?”

“Very,” they all agreed.

She took a deep breath and just blurted out, “He laid a kiss on me then. God, you guys, it wasn’t a hot and heavy kiss. Just a sweet, gentle one. And it just…it floored me. Seriously mind blanking for several minutes afterwards. Then he was just a sweetie through breakfast. He helped clean up before having to take off for work.” She worried her lip with her teeth. “He left his numbers. Home and cell. And asked for mine.”

“And this is your version of ‘nothing happened’?” Lynn teased. “Sounds like something happened to me. Will likes you.”

Emma rolled her eyes at her sing-song voice.

“Can it, Lynn; here comes our food,” Hannah instructed, a huge grin on her face.

A waiter laid plates in front of Hannah, Ana and Lynn. Emma frowned for a moment before figuring he had to go back for hers. Just then an arm came around her side and set a plate in front of her. She looked up to thank the second server and froze for the second time that day. And the same person was responsible. Will.

He stood before her in black pants and white shirt. His face was flushed—from the heat of the kitchen, she supposed—and his hair looked like he had been wearing a hat, all mussed and sexy looking.

“W-what are you doing here?” She managed to speak after staring like a freaking idiot—her specialty apparently—for a few long moments.

He shrugged and smoothed his hand down her hair to settle on her back. “I told you I run my family’s restaurant. My mom’s family is the Kincaid in Kincaid’s Place.”

She turned her head quickly toward her friends. “That’s why you insisted on coming
here
for lunch.”

They seemed very intent on their meals all the sudden. With a snort, she turned back to Will.

“So you cooked me breakfast and lunch. I hope you don’t expect me to return the favor. I’m limited to mac and cheese and frozen pizza.”

“We’ll see what we can do to change that.” He winked. “As much as I want to, I can’t stay and chat. I need to get back to the kitchen. Will you be home tonight?”

“Yeah, after shopping, that is.”

“Good, I’ll call you.” He leaned down and, in a low voice, asked, “Can I kiss you goodbye?”

“Yes!” All three of her friends spoke in unison, loud enough to draw stares.

She shot them a look before nodding. He closed the distance between them as his fingers burrowed through her hair to stoke the sensitive skin of her neck
. Oh yeah, bring it on
. His lips, warm and firm, covered hers briefly. Again, it was just a short kiss but the twitching started just the same. Apparently, her clit was equal opportunity when it came to kisses. Well, Will’s kisses, at least. He rubbed his lips back and forth then pulled away with a smile. He trailed the back of his fingers down her cheek and held her gaze for a few moments.

“I’ll call tonight,” he promised. “Have fun shopping. Bye, ladies… Emma.”

“Bye, Will. Talk to you tonight.”

And there she was, all breathless again. She closed her eyes briefly before turning to her friends.

“Well, that looked yummy as hell.” Hannah laughed.

“Oh my God, Em. That was hot,” Ana whispered.

“Uh huh.” Lynn set her elbow next to her plate and rested her chin on her hand. “Good kisser?”

“Oh yeah. Good shudders happening over here.”

“Okay, eat up, ladies,” Ana instructed. “We need to go shopping. Our Emma here needs sexy undies for sure. No cotton briefs for a man who kisses like that, no sirree.”

Emma chuckled as she speared her ravioli with her fork, her mind definitely not on the food.

* * * *

Will climbed the stairs to his apartment. Every muscle in his body protested, and he felt grimy from spending the day in the kitchen. He wanted nothing more than to drink an ice-cold beer while standing under a hot shower. Yup, he’d stand under the spray until the water ran cool. What he wouldn’t give to have a hot tub right now.

He let himself in and, without bothering to turn on a light, went through the living room to the kitchen. Grabbing the much-desired beer, he walked back into the living room and sat in the leather recliner. He picked up the phone and dialed Emma’s number—a number he’d quickly committed to memory. God, the woman made him feel like an eager teenager calling his crush. He wanted… Well, he wanted her. But more than that, he wanted to
know
her. Know her favorite things. Know her dislikes. Know what made her tick.

“Hello?” Her voice traveled along the phone lines to tease his senses with its husky sleepiness.

“Emma, it’s Will. Did I wake you?” He glanced at the clock. Eleven-forty-five. He should have asked earlier when it was too late to call.

“No, not really. I was watching the news and dozed off. Hmmmm.” He heard her yawn and the long, throaty sound put many images in his mind—her arms stretched over her head, her breasts pressing against her shirt, the long length of her neck just begging for his mouth.

“Shopping wear you out?” he managed to force out.

She laughed softly and his cock jumped at the sweet sultriness.

“Yeah, a little, but I found some good deals. Ana is disappointed in me though. I wouldn’t pay five hundred dollars for a pair of boots.”

“Ah. They weren’t calling your name?”

“No, and for that price, they’d have to sing an aria before I’d cave.”

Will leaned back against the soft leather and extended his legs to cross them at the ankles. The position alleviated some of the pressure from his erection, but not enough.

“So what
did
you buy?”

“Eh, just some jeans, a couple of skirts, a few blouses, and…uh…other stuff.”

“Hmm, tell me about this other stuff. I’m intrigued, Miss Emma.” He took a sip of his beer.

“Will, I’m not going to tell you about my new under—uh, stuff.”

“Under stuff, huh? Sounds sexy,” he teased, though his mind went wild with images of Emma in slinky, silky and lacy garments.

She mumbled something under her breath.

“What was that, sweetheart?”

“I said, apparently ‘sexy’ was the point.” She inhaled deeply then spoke. “Ana and the others figured my underwear wasn’t sexy enough and made that the focus of the shopping spree. They thought since they saw you at my house that I needed something sexier.”

Will couldn’t help it—he burst out laughing. “And how did you feel about that?”

“Well, honestly, by the time a guy gets around to seeing your underwear, he doesn’t really care much aside from whether they’re clean or not. He’s just focused on getting them off.”

For a moment, Will couldn’t speak. Is that the type of guy she’d been with in the past? Anger welled up inside him at the men who didn’t take the time or effort to make Emma feel special and desirable.

“Sweetheart, men care…or I do, anyway. And while I have no doubt you’d look delicious in a pair of cotton granny pants, my mind boggles to think of you in something lacy and clingy or silky and slippery.”
My cock can attest to that.
He shifted uncomfortably.

“Oooooh.” She spoke the word softly, drawing it out. “I see. Well then, I’m glad I made the purchases I did.” Before he could speak, she continued, “So you’re done with work then?”

He grinned at the quick change of subject. She was nervous. He kind of liked that—liked knowing he flustered her. ‘Cause she sure as hell threw him for a loop. When he’d gone out last night, no thought of women had been in his mind. Now, since he’d seen her, one woman had set up residence there.

“No, I have to go back down and close up.”

“Down? You’re still there?”

“I live above the restaurant.”

“Oh, cool. Wow, you’ve had a long day already. The late night last night didn’t help, I’m sure. And I’m sure you didn’t sleep too well with me on top of you. I mean, after not being able to move, you must be all stiff and achy.”

He grinned at her words and knew, at her little gasp, exactly when she realized what she said.

“Oh God, I should just shut up now.”

“I slept just fine, sweetheart. And yeah, I sure could use a long, hot soak right now. Makes me regret not installing a large whirlpool tub when I redid the apartment.”

“I have a hot tub. Out on the deck. Maybe you can come sometime after work and take a soak. I haven’t used it yet, but it works.”

“That sounds good. I’ll definitely take you up on that sometime. I have a little while ‘til I have to head down, but if you’re tired, I can let ya go.”

“No, I’m good. Unless you want to go relax a bit before having to go back to work?”

He smiled. “I am relaxing. So tell me how you ended up friends with Lynn and Hannah. I know you didn’t go to our school. I don’t remember Ana, either.”

“Oh, Ana and I went to school together—a private, all girls’ school—and our fathers did some kind of work together. I met Hannah when she started going out with my brother several years ago.”

“One of your brothers?” He tried picturing the tall beauty with either of the men he’d met that morning. Matt was a bit young, but moreover didn’t seem like Hannah’s type, and hell, Mark… Was he anyone’s type? “Doesn’t seem like an ideal match.”

Emma chuckled. “Not those brothers. I have two others. She went out with Nick for a while. It didn’t work out, but by the time they figured that out, we were friends. Somehow it evolved into the four of us…the girls.”

“You seem really close.”

“We are. Growing up with four brothers isn’t exactly easy on a girl. Now, I essentially have three sisters to turn to.”

“So you’re not close to any of your family?” Will couldn’t stop the questioning. He wanted to know anything and everything about this woman.

“My mom died when I was young. Dad’s a tad overprotective.” She snorted, leading him to assume that it was a gross understatement. “My brothers are the same way—well, Mark and Tom anyway. Nick isn’t around; he travels a lot for work. Matt is probably the one I’m closest to, but…he’s a guy.”

“So you can’t be close to a guy?”

“Please. You mention sex and me in the same sentence, and Matt starts to gag or slam his head against hard surfaces. The girls are just easier to go to and talk.”

“I can see that.” He took a swig of beer and thought of what else he could ask her.

She beat him to it.

“What about you? Any sibs? Are you close to them?”

“I come from a big family, too— three sisters and two brothers.” He thought about it a moment. “I always thought we were close, but now that you mention it, I’d rather not think of my sisters and sex. But we all get along fairly well.”

“Are you the oldest?”

“Second oldest.”

“And that makes you how old?”

“I’m thirty-three. Over the hill,” he teased. “Am I too old for you, sweet Emma?”

She laughed, and his gut tightened as desire punched though him. “Hardly. I’m not far behind you.” She yawned loudly. “Oh, excuse me.”

“It’s getting late. I should let you go to sleep. One more question?”