Kiss Me Crazy (18 page)

Kara brought the receiver to her ear. “Hey.”

“I’m sorry, baby. I shouldn’t have taken out my frustrations on you.”

His deep voice, tinged with regret, wrapped around her like a cocoon and soothed her senses. How could she ever have doubted she loved this man? His voice alone had the power to tug at her heartstrings, make her insides ache with need and tenderness.

“No, I’m the one who should be sorry, Baron. I shouldn’t have hung up on you like that. Are you okay? You sounded like you’ve had a bad day.”

She thought she heard him laugh but wasn’t sure. Tension was no longer evident in his tone when he spoke.

“I’ve been pushing myself hard but everything is perfect now. Are we stil on for tomorrow night?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Is ten o’clock too late?”

That should give her time to make it back from Chloe’s.

“No, it’s perfect.”

“Good. I plan to make it up to you.”

His voice had taken on a velvet quality, ful of decadent secrets and ilicit promises. Kara swalowed before asking, “For what?”

“For being a total idiot today. We had our first fight and I started it.”

“Yes, you did.”

He laughed.

“However, it takes two,” she added, smiling. “I shouldn’t be so prickly about my business. I guess I have some making up to do too.”

“I guess you do.” There was laughter in his voice.

Kara crawled inside her bed, terry robe and al, as she and Baron talked until late into the night. She lost track of time and his soothing voice was the last sound she heard before sleep claimed her.

***

The next morning, Kara woke with the sun, showered, but took her time getting dressed for work. Her mind kept drifting to Baron and their ten o’clock makeup date. What did he have in mind? She hoped it involved a night of decadence and breakfast in bed. It was unlike her to want to rush things, but now that she’d accepted her feelings for him, she couldn’t wait to share some intimate moments.

She studied her naked reflection in the mirror with critical eyes and shook her head. She’d lost some pounds but was stil thicker around the hips and ass than what the fashion world considered normal. Not that she was complaining. She was happy with her looks. The way Baron’s heated gaze caressed her from head to toe every time they met told her he didn’t mind them either.

Stil, a girl had to take care of a few personal things before taking the next step with her man.

Kara lifted her arms up and checked her armpits. She’d given herself a shave while showering and it showed. A scowl crept on her face as her gaze drifted below her waist. Thank goodness she had an appointment with her favorite spa lady.

Her watch beeped and Kara groaned. Work was caling.

She changed, grabbed her keys and bag, an apple and yogurt for lunch, and bolted for the door. She paused before she exited her home and frowned, feeling something amiss. Tessie. Her house seemed empty without the little tabby. The cat tended to folow her to the door with an indignant whine at being left behind.

As she drove away from her home, she got Renee on the line. “Maybe I should take Tessie with me to Idaho.” Renee clicked her tongue. “You and I know you took in the little fur bal to keep you company and warm your toes at night.”

“And your point is?”

“Why would you want her with you when you have a real man to do al of the above and then some? Make use of these two weeks or I’l deck you if you ever complain to me about lack of single men in L.A. The cat stays with me.”

Kara laughed, seeing right through Renee. “She whined her way into your heart.”

“Please.”

“She did. Admit it.”

“Okay, fine. She did. And I mean it about the two weeks, woman. Shape up or shut up. So? Are you going to Chloe’s tonight?”

“Yes…alone.” It had taken a while to get comfortable enough to bare her al to Chloe and when she finaly did, Kara insisted it had to be after hours. She had a low pain threshold despite the fact that Chloe used wonderful creams to lessen the sting after a wax.

“You’re such a baby,” Renee said with a laugh. “Okay then, let’s go shopping tomorrow morning.”

“What? Don’t tel me you forgot we’re attending a bar mitzvah tomorrow.”

“Crap.”

“Don’t even think of standing me up, Renee Gunter.” She sighed. “Okay. I’l be at your place early…eight-ish.

You drive and I’l navigate. What about afternoon? ”

“No can do. Got a date,” Kara blurted out before she could check her tongue.

“You do? Who with?”

Kara hesitated for a moment. “Baron.”

“Start talking. You’ve been holding out on me.”

“Can’t now, I’m stuck in traffic,” Kara lied smoothly. “Got to go.”

“Chicken. Don’t worry about Puss in Boots. I’l take very good care of her.”

Kara could always count on Renee in any crisis but that didn’t mean she had to know every little detail of her relationship with Baron. Some things were better left private. On the other hand, if tonight went as planned, Baron might stil be at her place when Renee arrived. Al the way to the galery, a smile played on Kara’s lips as she muled over everything that had happened in the last two weeks.

At the galery, sounds from upstairs indicated Gena was already in the office. Maya wasn’t in yet, so Kara scribbled on a Post-it and pinned it on the receptionist’s desk. She was expecting Ralph Douglas, the owner of the Halè painting, to stop by later in the day. She hung up the Do Not Disturb sign squarely outside her workroom and disappeared downstairs. The only thing that could keep Baron off her mind was work and she immersed herself in it.

No one bothered her until closing time when Douglas came to inspect his painting. By then she was done and very satisfied with the results of her hard work. The restored piece was breathtaking and the man’s appreciation only added to her sense of accomplishment.

“We’l send it to your place first thing Monday morning.”

“What about later in the week instead?” the elderly gentleman asked, glancing at covered canvases around her workroom. “I need to find a framer who can do it justice. The couple I usualy use moved to Seattle.”

Kara was temped to mention her upcoming business but she couldn’t do that to the man, not when her store wouldn’t be ready to take orders for at least three months. She recommended the framers the galery subcontracted and explained she’d be gone for two weeks but would leave the Halè ready for the delivery men.

Once Douglas left, Kara cleaned up and headed upstairs to find another rose waiting for her. She ignored Maya’s curious questions about her secret admirer but hurried out of the galery with a spring in her step. On her way home, she stopped briefly by the liquor store to replenish her cache and picked up a few groceries.

There was something about wearing a slinky dress without pantyhose or tights after waxing that was so pleasurable and a little…naughty, Kara told herself later after she showered and puled out a simple, knee-level chiffon pulover frock in bold green and black stripes from her closet. It was wasted on her now, but later, after her visit to Chloe, she’d appreciate the outfit more. To make things even more interesting, she added a skimpy lace thong and crisscross sling, high-heeled sandals.

Baron won’t know what hit him.

She got to Chloe’s by six-thirty, early enough to have her hair washed, trimmed and styled. When Chloe insisted on having dinner first, Kara had no choice but to oblige. By the time they retired to a private room, it was after eight.

Usualy Chloe started with a facial and eyebrows, then her legs, and finished with a bikini wax. This time Kara reversed the order, her eye on the clock as the hour hand crept past nine. Chloe slowed down the whole process with nonstop chatter and occasional gestures to drive a point home while butterflies dipped and fluttered in Kara’s stomach. She didn’t want to miss Baron.

“Wil you stop fidgeting?” Chloe looked up from where, she was busy applying a beeswax concoction in Kara’s nether region and gave her a pointed look. “You’ve got somewhere to go tonight you forgot to mention?”

Yes, darn it.
“No. It’s been a long day and I’m tired,” she snapped.

Chloe roled her eyes, clearly not buying Kara’s explanation. Luckily, her friend didn’t push for an answer, just pursed her lips and went back to work. When they finaly finished, it was quarter to ten. Kara gave Chloe a big tip and an even bigger hug and raced out of the spa.

Her heart hurtled to her throat when she saw Baron’s SUV

outside her place and his tal frame leaning against the patio pole by her door. The yelow security lights cast shadows on his handsome features. Khaki pants molded to his masculine thighs and a white polo shirt hung elegantly over his shoulders. Her heart picked up tempo and a flash flood of feelings rushed to her stomach when his predatory eyes locked on her as she puled into her driveway.

Al her talk of being naughty tonight had seemed so easy when the object of her desire was miles away. Now that he was here, she felt nervous and inept. She should open the garage and park her car, but instead she pushed the button to lower her car window and watched him saunter toward her, his gait smooth and slow. The closer he got, the larger, sexier, and more overwhelming he seemed. And the more she tensed.

“Sorry I’m late,” Kara said in a breathless voice she didn’t recognize as hers.

He leaned down and flashed his devastating smile, his eyes flickering to her mouth and staying there.

“You’re worth the wait.” He opened her door and offered her his hand.

Kara switched off the engine and stepped out of her car, the cool night air splashing goose bumps al over her bare arms and waxed legs. Baron’s warm hands closed around her arms, his large body effectively blocking the cold as he pressed her against the car.

Kara lifted her head and their eyes connected, her lips tingling with anticipation. He slid his palm up and down her arm. The gesture probably meant to warm her but instead hurled a need so intense through her body she trembled.

“You’re cold.” His voice was tender.

“Not anymore.”

Baron laughed, his hand moving from her arms to hold her face in place as his head dipped. The kiss didn’t start gentle, no nips and licks like their previous bouts of foreplay. It was hard and plundering, a sexual possession. His tongue thrust between her lips, sweeping inside to mate with hers while his hot body ground against hers. She gave into the kiss, feelings mushrooming inside of her until her mind went foggy and her lungs starved for air.

Baron yanked his head back to growl, “God, you taste good.”

He tilted her head with his thumb and gave his mouth access to her neck, nuzzled the sensitive area around her ear. “Smel heavenly too. I could feast on you al day long.” Her blood sang at his words. She gripped his shirt and said,

“Kiss me again.”

It wasn’t a request. It came out as an order but Kara refused to feel an ounce of embarrassment. Not when Baron complied.

The kiss slowed, becoming deeper and languid, tongues caressing and savoring. His urgent hands skimmed down her sides, discovering the dips and curves of her body, a little rough and relentless until they cupped her buttocks and anchored her against his erection. When he finaly puled back, one hand gripped her waist while the other hugged her upper back to hold her tightly in his arms. They were both breathing hard, shaking, trying to find their balance.

“We need to go inside,” he said in a voice stil rough with arousal.

Kara nodded, incapable of speaking without unladylike panting.

Cold air skidded over her skin when he stepped back and gave her breathing room, but inside her the flame burned brighter and hotter like nothing she’d ever experienced. Part of her was thriled, another part was panicky. Was it normal to have your body and mind, every last one of your senses centered on one person?

Did it matter? For once in her life she was experiencing something beyond her expectations and she’d be a fool to try to label it.

Kara reached the door only to realize she didn’t have her purse or her keys. She turned to see Baron reaching inside her car.

He removed her keys from where she’d left them in the ignition and lifted her purse from the front passenger seat. Instead of feeling embarrassed, she smiled.

Baron locked Kara’s car and looked up to find her grinning at him. She looked magnificent with her hair flowing down her back, her figure-hugging dress showing those sleek sexy legs and her lips swolen from his kisses. He couldn’t leave without making love to her tonight. His mind warred with his body, raw primal passion coliding with fantasies of her long legs wrapped around him. Sheer wil won. No, he refused to make love to her and scurry from her bed because she had a bar mitzvah to attend. When he finaly made love to Kara, he didn’t want to be rushed. He planned to savor the moment, keep loving her until they were both satiated.

Baron walked to where she stood, lifted her chin, and for a moment studied her heart-shaped face under the patio security light

—the hazel eyes now darkened with passion, the delicious mouth puffy. He wanted to tel her how beautiful she was, how precious.

Instead he brushed his lips over hers, their breaths mingling, need hovering thick and heavy between them.

“We need to talk,” he murmured.

Confusion flashed in her eyes.

“Okay. Thanks for getting my purse and locking my car.” Once she unlocked the door and they got inside the house, she threw him a questioning look over her shoulder. “Do you want something to drink? Wine, soft drinks, or coffee?”

“I’l have some wine.” He folowed her to the kitchen, watching the fluid motion of her shapely buttocks under her dress.

He needed to focus on something else. Fast. “Ralph Douglas caled me earlier this evening.”

She closed the fridge door, a bottle of red wine in her hand and a frown on her face. “The owner of the Halè? Why?”

“Don’t misunderstand. He loved the work you did and couldn’t sing your praises enough. But he needed to know which one of the framers you recommended he should go with. Why didn’t you tel him you could frame it for him?” Kara leaned against the counter and crossed her arms.

“Because I’m not open for business yet.”

He heard her defensive tone and frowned. Her business was obviously a touchy subject, something he hoped to rectify tonight. “He’s not in a hurry.”

She studied him suspiciously. “Why are you teling me this?”

“I told him about your store and he liked the idea of working with you again.”

She cocked a perfectly shaped brow. “You’re drumming up business for me?”

“Sure. In this business, friends help each other.” She shook her head then laughed. “But last night you acted…never mind.” She rummaged inside a drawer and came up with a corkscrew but instead of opening the bottle, she studied him with a weird expression, a cross between bemusement and exasperation. “You’re very unpredictable, Baron Fitzgerald.”