In Love by Design (The Adventures of Anabel Axelrod) (11 page)

I
stood up to give my sad sister a bracing one-armed hug and laughed. “Hell, we all think that, Mac, but every girl deserves her toys.”

S
niggering and glowering at the same time. Mac looked up at the ceiling and entreated, “What did I ever do to deserve such sisters?”

The doorbell rang.
Leading her out of the bedroom, I squeezed my oldest sibling’s arm and answered cheerfully, “No need to look up there for answers, Mac, you’re just incredibly lucky.”

Thinking
about tomorrow night’s ninja plan, it’s difficult to find the bright side of investigating my sister’s husband of suspected infidelity. I smelled a lose-lose situation for Team Anabel on this one. Somebody’s not going to be happy with me at the end of all this. I guess the bright side is that they’ll be mad at Jaz and Tre J, too.

Shifting in the
truck’s front seat, I accidentally put pressure on my left butt cheek and a stabbing pain was the result. Flipping up my short skirt, I gently skimmed my fingers along my butt until they touched a piece of a splinter sticking out above the skin. It was long enough to get a good grip with my finger and thumb, and I slowly pulled it out. Feeling several more that weren’t so easily accessible, I pushed the visor back up and made another phone call.

There
’s only one person I’d call at close to midnight on a work night to pull splinters out of my ass, and I figured she can’t say no, since I agreed to be her Maid of Honor. Fair is fair.

Anna’s voice
was groggy with sleep when she answered, and she kept repeating in surprise, “I can’t believe you’re calling me!”

I
don’t think it’s that unbelievable that I am calling, so after the third time, I interrupted her refrain and told her what I needed. This had her wide awake and laughing in no time.

Anna
bargained, “Ah…sure, I’ll agree to operate when you get here, if you promise to answer every question I have about how you got the splinters!”

I grumpily agreed, knowing I
am creating a monster, but having little choice.

She paused and then asked, “Where are you
right now, anyway?”

It struck me that her tone of voice sounded like she was trying very hard to be casually nonchalant.

Frowning,
I answered, “Waiting for Luke in his truck. Why?”

Anna only laughed again and said
a quick, muffled goodbye before hanging up.

I shrugged at her flakiness and relaxed back after that call. I still hadn’t listened to my fake godmother’s voicemail, but
I was getting drowsy and put it off again to rest my eyes.

They
fluttered open when Luke did a soft rap on the driver’s window to be let in. On a rush of cold air, my boyfriend filled the truck cab with his large body and powerful presence. Over the unpleasant odors radiating from me and my clothes, I breathed in the clean masculine scent that was unique to Luke. It never failed to send my senses reeling. I floated off again on a puffy pheromone cloud into la-la land, happy to be alive.

He
clicked on a soft light and adjusted his seat back. I didn’t move, but my eyes lazily traveled over my Hero from top to bottom. He didn’t look any the worse for wear, not even a short black hair was out of place.

Propping his knee over the consol
e and turning his body my way, Luke slowly pulled off his black leather gloves while taking me in lying stretched out on the passenger seat. From the seductive smile curving his mouth and the teasing expression in his eyes, Luke now appeared quite chipper when compared to his coldness in the kitchen fifteen minutes ago. Beating up the kidnapper seems to have accomplished what kissing his girlfriend couldn’t—it restored Torquemada’s good mood.

My boyfriend,
who hasn’t contacted me in two weeks, reached over and tugged playfully on a long, blonde curl hanging down the front of my blazer. “Princess, I can see you’re suffering from post-traumatic stress. I think what you need right now is your first fuck in a Ford-150.”

“You’re just saying that to make me feel better,” I replied, and gave an elaborate yawn.

Luke raised a brow. “Is it working?”

I screwed up my face and then shook my head. “It’s too romantic for my taste. I prefer a blunter approach.”

Luke laughed and sat back. He reached in
side his leather jacket and took out a very small gift bag. It was stop sign red.

Smiling, he held it out to me
and moved his head in that arrogant motion. “Then I owe you another apology because you are going to hate this.”

I
stared longingly at the little bag. Small gift bags rate high on my scale of good presents, very high. Small could potentially mean jewelry or perhaps even a key to a hideaway cabin where a man with amazing arm muscles and a super dong could sexually torment me for days.

I tore my eyes away from the
little red matador cape being waved under my nose and met Luke’s green gaze. I saw a guarded look beneath the confidence. Something was wrong here. There was still a sense of remoteness in Luke below the surface of his teasing that I don’t understand. It’s beyond the anger I’ve felt brimming since Luke appeared in the kitchen doorway. I’d attributed that to wanting to protect me, but maybe I was mistaken. I quickly scan my memory to be certain, but I can’t think of any reason he would have to be unhappy with me since we last kissed goodbye at Thanksgiving.

“Another apology?” I felt a little hitch in my heartbeat.
“What was the first?”

He shrugged a
wide shoulder. “You’re probably upset I haven’t called you in the last couple of weeks, so I brought you this gift, as my way of groveling.”

“Is there a reason you didn’t call?” I asked
, my voice lilting hopefully, “Was something wrong?”

I couldn’t help but notice he wasn’t wearing hand casts and still had his tongue.

Luke adjusted the heat vent. When he met my eyes again, his were cool and he repeated that one shoulder arrogant shrug thing again.

H
e motioned in my direction with the gift bag and said, “Nothing was wrong. I was busy with a training class I had to take over because the scheduled instructor had a family emergency.”

Pushing
up to a sitting position, I kept my weight on my left thigh and hip. “I see.”

Actually,
I don’t know why I said that. I don’t see anything at all. Men make time for what interests them the most. Sometimes they are genuinely super busy, but even that rarely stops a man from contacting a woman he has the hots for. If a man tells you they were too busy to call or see you, it’s generally because their desire to do so was less than any inconvenience they’d suffer making it happen. Regardless, it’s never a good sign. Even if you’re sure they love you, what woman wants to be so low on the totem pole that they’re considered an inconvenience?

Not me
, that’s for damn sure.

As a grown woman,
I’ve had zero personal experience being a girlfriend. My only previous love relationship was a high school romance with no real issues, until my ex-cousin drugged and had sex with that boyfriend which caused our break up. I’m not sure what to do about the sick feeling in my gut at the way Luke was acting. Technically, our relationship as an official couple was merely hours old in the real time that we’ve spent together, so this was uncharted territory. I’m going to fall back on what works when I hire on a new employee at the store.

‘I
t’s always best to start as you mean to go on.’

I don’t know who
coined this phrase originally, but I loved this no bullshit approach. My staff must, as well, since they rarely quit without a good reason. People need to know their boundaries and this includes a smart, strong, tough, cruel, and arrogantly dumbass man.

C
ontrol freaks are often misunderstood people. I can’t speak for every one of us, but I have no desire to rule the whole world. I only want to control my reaction to what the whole world throws my way.

I
think it shows a high level of control when I accepted the gift bag from Luke’s hand, at the same time I hit the button to slide down the passenger window. Without hesitating, I sailed that little red flag right out the window.

Giving just one finger to the man I love also
exhibits impressive restraint, thank you very much, since he really deserved both barrels.

I
dusted my hands off in a deliberate manner. “You’re probably going to be “upset”, but
that
is how I react when I’m left twisting in the wind for two weeks.”

Leaning towards me, Luke
’s eyes glittered like cut diamonds and he spoke with menacing softness, “You’re lucky you have splinters in your ass right now.”

Leaning towards him,
our noses are inches apart. “Since you’re always threatening to spank me when you’re mad, I’m sure you’ll understand when I do this!” I shoved Luke’s arrogant shoulders hard with the heels of my hands, “How dare you taint the gift giving process with your stupid groveling gift bag!” I shoved him again, even though he’d barely budged the first time, and yelled, “Now please, take me home!”

Luke’s face went slack with astonishment when I
shouted, but only for a second. He cupped me by both upper arms, raised me up to my knees and pulled me closer.

He snarled in my face,
“So that’s it? Now you’re punishing me for not calling by wanting to run home? How like a woman,” he mocked with a short laugh. “I didn’t taint the gift giving process, you little idiot!”

Staring into the glittering eyes in front of me, i
t was my turn to be astonished. “Me punishing you? I’m the one being punished! First, you don’t call me until I start to hope you’re in a hospital, and then you insult our love with a groveling gift,” I spat in disgust, “as if I’d rather have a gift than hear from you! Next, you act like an ass. You leave me no choice but to go home rather than be with you when I’ve missed you so much! How the hell is that you being punished?” I pushed out with my forearms to knock his hands off my shoulders. “I’m an idiot? You’re the biggest idiot that’s ever walked the earth and I want to go. Stop it! Quit laughing, you damn ass...! I don’t want to be kissed!”

Furious
at his amusement, I was slapping at Luke’s grasping hands like we were two grade-schoolers playing a fast game of patty-cake. I was also twisting my head to avoid his kisses. He easily overpowered me, and that only made me madder. Holding my wrists in one hand, Luke pulled me completely across the console with an arm around my waist, but was careful to keep me on my knees. I attempted to head butt him over his shouts of laughter.

When
he finally had me plastered against his chest, Luke held me close for a while with neither of us speaking. I stopped struggling only because I knew my skunky smell had to be assaulting him just as effectively as a smack to his big head.

Yes, I totally agree
it appeared I may have lost it on the control side of things, but as a leader in my bookstore, I often showed my employees how passionate I was over my love of books. My honesty allowed them to open up and tell me how they truly felt, since they’re pretty sure by that point that they couldn’t be stranger than me. To date, I’ve never shoved any of my staff, but I have been known to clutch an arm in excitement when discovering a mutual admiration for a writer.

Luke’s voice was
quiet at my temple, all traces of amusement wiped away. “Anabel, sweetheart, I’m sorry for my answer. Just listen to me a minute, okay? Let me explain why I didn’t call. Can I explain?”

“I don’t know, can you?”
Giving my wrists a shake in his hand, I said, “Let me go.”

R
eleasing my hands, he glided both of his up my back in a soothing rhythm. “Put your arms around my neck.”

“
It will be my pleasure, if you don’t mind being strangled.” I answered sweetly, not moving my arms up from my sides.

“
I don’t mind at all, but we can do that some other time,” Luke replied smoothly and his voice lowered, “and it will be our mutual pleasure.”

M
y eyes widened at his provocative words and I’m instantly intrigued. Anytime Luke has promised me something in that sexy tone in the past, I have absolutely loved it.

I
was currently kneeling in the front seat of my boyfriend’s truck with my face being smooshed against the leather jacket covering his chest. He has not explained one blasted thing to my satisfaction, so it’s a little unnerving to want to blow his behavior off and sink down on his rock hard leg that I was straddling between my thigh-highs. It took me a few seconds to pay attention to his next words because all the blood had gone from my head down to my cha-cha. Luckily, he can’t see my white face.

“I want you to know that I
’ve missed you, too.” He laughed shortly again, but this time without the nasty mocking undertone. “Very much.”

“You don’t sound happy.
Why is missing me a bad thing, Luke?”

He
moved restlessly under my cheek. I leaned back to look at his face and we were at the same height with me on my knees. At his brooding expression, I relented and put my arms around his neck. I hugged him in silent encouragement.