In Love by Design (The Adventures of Anabel Axelrod) (33 page)

I jumped up and said, “Hopefully that smart cookie is not Diego’s bimbo. Come with me and I’ll fill you in while I grab a couple of things out of my closet.”

Anna followed, but exclaimed in disbelief, “Are you saying I didn’t pack something you need at Luke’s?”

Laughing, I assured her, “
God, no! How could you know Pam would invite us out with her and Carter to some shindig tomorrow night? I want to wear that new dress I originally bought for over the holidays when we’re in Vegas.”

“The black strapless
dress?” Anna asked, wistfully.

“Yeah,” I answered
. Catching her wiping her eyes again, I laughingly asked, “Why are you crying now, Mama-Bride?”

“Luke is going to drool over you in that dress, Junior,” Anna answered
on a sigh. She sat on the stool while I gathered what I needed. She sniffed and then sobbed out, “Strapless always says, ‘one little shimmy and these boobs are yours for the asking!’ and that flared bottom skirt says ‘with one little flick of the wrist you can do me now’.” Anna went stumbling into the attached bathroom and came back with a Kleenex. Blowing her noise with a loud honking noise, she said, “A man definitely wants to instantly bend you over in that kind of dress.”

Anna crying
while she was analyzing the sexual merits of a dress and its psychological effects on the male population, just as we always did, was disconcerting to say the least.

“
Hey, take it easy,” I murmured, patting her on the shoulder.

Tears start
ed falling again and Anna bawled, “But what if I can never wear my skinny clothes again?”

“You
’re still wearing your skinny clothes,” I pointed out logically, picking up the bag with my dress and ushering my wackadoodle friend back into the hall.

Blowing her
nose a second time, Anna glared impatiently. “I know I am, but soon I’ll be wearing big shirts by Omar the damn Tentmaker!”

“This is probably true, but we’ll shop and they’ll be super cute tents.” Seeing her bottom lip quiver, I rush
ed to add, “Don’t stress about gaining weight. You are supposed to gain weight now, Anna love. It’s perfectly healthy and necessary for our baby girl. I think forty pounds is about the average amount of weight you’ll gain, and if we’re lucky, twenty of that will be in your enormously big breasts. You’ll be the most beautiful fertility goddess ever seen in the Western Hemisphere!”

Anna
was grinning at that image and I hurriedly took advantage of the lull in the crying action to bring her up to date on Mac’s suspicions and the ninja action planned for this evening.

As we clomped down the stairs, she’
d forgotten her angst over her skinny clothes and was peppering me with anxious questions about Mac and Diego’s marriage, most of which I couldn’t answer. We parted company in the lobby. She was loading up the jeep with the food for the poker party and I was going to the truck. We arranged to meet on Hwy 3 in Culver’s parking lot. I don’t think I was being watched or followed, but since I’m no expert, I don’t want anyone to see us leaving together.

I call
ed after her, “Please don’t tell Reggie that you’re driving my jeep or going out with me tonight. We have to keep this mission on the down low.”

Anna shot me a wide grin and the okay sign. The way she fe
lt about my brother tonight, she could probably happily lie to his face without flushing guiltily and repeatedly smiling on and off.

Ten minutes later, I
was following Anna towards my brother’s house and Luke’s farm. I was glad for Luke’s foresight in giving me a key to the house, so that I could get in and change into my ninja clothes.

I called Jazy and asked if she and Tre would mind meeting Anna and I at eight in Faribault
, instead of our previous arrangement of me coming to the Lazy j.  Wildly curious what tonight was all about; Jazy said that wasn’t a problem, since Stella was picking Blanca up at seven for their sleepover. She suggested we meet in Aldi Food’s parking lot and they’d look for my jeep. Jaz wasn’t sure what car Tre J had borrowed for tonight because Tre wasn’t back at the ranch yet from her afternoon class. I thought it ironic that Jaz unknowingly suggested a grocery store parking lot, but agreed that would be a good place to hide the jeep in plain sight.

Driving behind
Anna through the dark evening in the surprisingly light traffic on Hwy 3, the silence in the truck was building with my nervous anticipation. I’d been vacillating whether or not to call Luke and see what he said about his plans for tonight. Or, I could simply put off driving up to the farm until Anna texted me from Reg’s that Luke had arrived for the card game.

I decide
d to not call Luke or wait to go to the farm, but drive directly to Reggie’s with Anna. If fortune smiled my way tonight, we could drop off the food and Luke’s truck, and then leave before anyone arrived. Otherwise, I’ll wing it.

Traffic
continued to be light and the roads were clear, so we both pulled into Reggie’s at 5:55 PM. I’d already called Anna and hinted that we’re on a very strict timetable. She said she’d run in and out with the sandwiches while I parked the truck, switched to the jeep, and moved it down my brother’s driveway out of the lights. I wanted to remain unseen from someone casually looking out from the porch.

Sometimes Anna
wasn’t too shabby of a friend and this was one of them. True to her word, I think she threw the bags of food at my brother when he opened the door. She took off running into the dark night towards the jeep before he knew what hit him.

Pulling away while
she was buckling up, I asked her if she’d noticed if Luke was there already.

Breathing heavy from her mad sprint, she nodded vigorously. “Yes, and he was coming towards the door when he saw me, so I turned and ran!” She wiped her brow. “Whew! That is one man who can frown like I’ve never seen before! What’s going on, Junior?”

Laughing, I took off onto the road and drove towards the farm. “Let’s just say that Luke and I are having an interesting day.”

The
shrill alarm went off on my phone and Anna yelped in surprise. I laughed again and said, “Excuse me while I check in with Mr. Happy.”

Slowing down
, so I didn’t roll the jeep, I texted:
E

Turning into the lane
to the farm, Anna asked excitedly, “Can you show me the inside of the man cave barn?”

My phone buzzed and
I read Luke’s text:
K. Where are you?

“Sorry, but the barn is locked and I only have a key to the house,” I replied absent
ly, roaring up the driveway and thinking about what I wanted to answer in response to Luke’s thunderous demand.

“Ah, that sucks,” Anna muttered. “I’ve really wanted to see that barn. Reggie’s been over a few times and is so jealous.”

“Sometimes I forget Reggie knew Luke before me,” I murmured, looping around the circular driveway and parking the jeep.

Laughing like giddy high school girls, I
snatched my bags and we ran to the back door. Entering into the back hall, I noticed Luke had courteously left on the overhead light. I switched on the kitchen light, too.

Anna
was squealing over the cuteness of the kitchen and I smiled, handing her the paper bag of chips and salsa. “Have some of these if you‘d like. I have to run to the bedroom for a few minutes.” Waving to the counter area, I said, “The ginger cookies I told you about are on that plate under the foil. If there’s any left, help yourself. There’s stuff to drink in the refrigerator.”

Perking up, Anna said, “Sure, go on, don’t worry about me. I’ll look around in here.”

Continuing to flip on lights as I went, Luke’s house came alive. Anna’s squeals turned into moans of ecstasy back in the kitchen, a sure sign she’d hit pay dirt with the cookies.

I had
my dress unzipped and was pulling it over my head by the time Luke’s bedroom door closed behind me. Throwing the dress, and the other two bags I brought, on top of the bench at the foot of the bed, I pulled off my boots next. Unsnapping the front closure of my bra, I flung the flimsy scrap of white lace onto one of the four posters of the big bed. Like a ring toss game, it caught and dangled by a thin strap.

I
caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror on Luke’s bathroom door. A woman looked back with long, disheveled blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes. She was wearing only sheer, lace tights and an EVILBEL smile.

I
texted Luke my answer:
I’m in your bedroom and missing you

Luke’
s shouting return text was instantaneous:
ETA
3 min. Do not move!

Sinking onto th
e white down comforter with a groan, I covered my face and started laughing.

That was not the answer I expected
.

I think Anna was
about to find out just how high on my toes Luke keeps me.

“
Give It 2 U” by Robin Thicke ft. Kendrick Lamar

Friday 12/07/12

6
:08 PM

The bedroom door opened and
my war-god walked in, closing the door very softly behind him. That careful click was more effective than the thunder of any slamming door. Luke standing there with his hands on his hips, coolly observing me, only emphasized the loud silence.

The
best defense is a good offense.

S
o I said, “You’re five minutes late.”

I don’
t think Luke expected to see Anna munching on cookies in his kitchen, but tardy people are always full of excuses.

I’d used my extra minutes to first freshen up in Luke’s bathroom and then
tried to figure out what to do with myself. I was wearing only the tights with a lacey pattern that’s open and sheer, not leaving much to the imagination. For all intents and purposes, I was essentially nude while waiting for my boyfriend--who’d lied to me today and then ditched me tonight. It was a moral dilemma. I didn’t know whether to drape myself seductively on the side of the bed or lean nonchalantly against one of the bed posters with a pillow in front of me.

‘My vote
is for straddling the wall to be frisked!’
the sex kitten voice meowed. The detective voice enthusiastically endorsed this vote. The other voices all threw in their suggestions and I was a little taken aback when the mean mommy voice opted for twirling from the ceiling fan.

Falling backwards onto the cushy bed in groaning frustration, I lay staring up at the ceiling with my arms flung out and this
was how Luke found me.

U
nbuttoning his black shirt and not taking his glittering eyes off me, he murmured his answer to my tardy accusation, “So I am, and you look good enough to eat.”

Watching about one hundred beautiful muscles flex when he shrugged out of the shirt, I huffed, “Yes, you like your sacrificial lambs all spread out
like a feast and waiting for you, don’t you?”

H
e cocked a black brow while his jeans came off. His eyes ran over me, stopping at my breasts. My nipples were already stiff from the chill of the room, but they grew almost painfully erect under his admiring gaze. “I’d say you’re more of a wildcat than a lamb, but I’m definitely appreciating the spread out and waiting.”

I stare
d at the male underwear ad walking towards me in gray briefs trimmed in black, and I swallowed hard at the sight. This was the real ad we didn’t get to see, unless the magazine screwed up and forgot to air spray out the man’s dangly bits circa the legend of “The Man on Page 602”

Rising up on my elbows for a clearer view of
my own private runway show, I couldn’t help if this position brought my chest closer to Luke’s attention and caused my thighs to fall open wider.

“You lied to me today,” I stated flatly, dragging my eyes up
Luke’s body to glare into his veiled eyes.

A Greek God come to life, Luke
stopped by the side of the bed and looked down at me. He cupped my foot in his hand, squeezed lightly, and he didn’t pretend to not understand what I meant.

He responded
evenly, “No, I didn’t. It’s not lying if I choose not tell you every thought in my head.”

“Ha!
Why did I know you’d say that?”

His hand trailed along my
calf and over my knee. He squeezed high on my thigh. His grip was warm, but Luke’s voice was cold. “You didn’t keep your word, Anabel.”

I didn’t pretend
to not understand, either. Ignoring the large hand cupped around my thigh the best I could with four knuckles grazing Queen V, I haughtily lifted my chin. “I always keep my word.”

Luke
moved his hand from resting within tormenting range of wildcat kingdom and I let out the breath I’d been holding. His finger began to trace over the swirling lace flowers on the tights. My stomach involuntarily sucked in and trembled when he traced all the way up to the thin elastic band an inch below my navel. Continuing to lightly draw circles on the bare skin of my stomach, his finger paused before moving lower again and down my thighs.